With a majority of their core from last year’s team that made it to the IHSA Class 2A sectional championship round, the Wilmington girls volleyball team is plenty familiar with staying composed during high-pressure moments.

Although it was only a regular season game, Thursday’s home game against rival Coal City as the unofficial start to the Wildcats’ homecoming weekend certainly gave off the vibe of a postseason matchup. And like they’ve proven to do, the Wildcats once again used that intensity to fuel their fire to the tune of a 25-19, 25-19 sweep of their Illinois Central Eight Conference rivals.

Defending conference champion Wilmington moved to 16-3 and 6-1 in the ICE to stay a game back of Manteno for the conference lead with its fourth win a row and third win of the week. The Coalers slid to 12-11-1, 4-3.

“We’re very good at playing as a team and trusting each other,” Wildcats outside hitter Rachel Smith said. “I think in pressure situations, not letting it get to us, just leaning on each other and playing as a team, that’s all we can do. ... It was pretty intense obviously, because it was a big rival and it was homecoming. We knew us and Coal City would both play up to the atmosphere and intensity. It was fun.”

The Wildcats were in total control from the jump, taking an early double-digit lead before holding off a late Coalers run, and Smith was the biggest reason why. The All-State standout caught fire at the service line, turning a 13-4 lead to a 17-4 score with five straight aces. She had six aces in the first set alone and finished the night with eight aces, six kills and a pair of blocks.

“I like, especially in practice, focusing on every different aspect and doing as much as I can in a game,” Smith said. “Not just doing one thing and being weaker at other spots, I try to be versatile.”

Wilmington coach Kelly Van Duyne said that while some outsides can be somewhat negated by solid gameplanning, Smith’s versatility – which also included joining libero Sami Liaromatis in leading the defensive charge – is tough to plan for.

“It’s hard to shut her down because if she’s not in the front row blocking and getting kills, she’s in the back row getting aces and digs,” Van Duyne said. “It’s rare to see players in our conference that can make such an impact like she does.”

The Coalers got on a heater of their own after a timeout, getting to back to as close as 24-19 on an Ava Kenney block before a service error gave the first set to the hosts.

The second set ended with the same final score, but was achieved in a much different way. It was the Coalers who took an early lead in the second, eventually swelling their lead to 13-6. But the Wildcats mounted a comeback, tying it up at 16, 17 and 18.

They took a 19-18 lead on an errant Coalers hit and scored the next five points, including a Molly Southall kill and two more aces. Melia Hincherik put the finishing touches on with a kill to get to 25.

The message Van Duyne had for her team late in the second set was the same as the end of the first, only with the roles reversed.

“Even if we’re down a couple points here or there, it’s the same for them, it’s not over until we get to 25 (points),” Van Duyne said. “We have all six players making a contribution, we’ve got the bench cheering everyone on, we’ve got the fans, so it’s really a group effort.”

While she saw some flashes on occasion, Coalers coach Pam McMurtrey said Thursday’s effort was largely uncharacteristic from a team that came into play a little shorthanded due to some injury woes.

“That was definitely not our game by any means. That was not Coaler volleyball,” McMurtrey said. “They’re stronger than that in serve receive. We had some good back-row attacks, some decent serves, but we struggled in serve receive.”

With Thursday’s game marking both teams’ halfway point of the ICE season, the Wildcats know they have to keep pace with Manteno, who they visit Oct. 7, with conference wins against Peotone and Herscher next week. The Coalers now sit three games back in a conference with several talented teams and a conference the Coalers feel they can also win.

“It’s definitely attainable and I think the conference can go in any direction,” McMurtrey said. “I’ve said from Day 1 after seeing some teams play that I don’t think there’s one team that’s absolutely dominant. There are a lot of teams that are pretty equal, it’s just who shows up to play that day.”