Volleyball: After slow start, Dixon finds rhythm in regional semifinal win over Ottawa

DIXON – After Ottawa came out hot to start Tuesday’s Class 3A Dixon Regional semifinal, Dixon settled in and took control down the stretch in the first set, then rode that momentum through the second set for a 25-18, 25-15 win at Lancaster Gym.

The Duchesses advance to Thursday’s regional final to face Galesburg, a 25-17, 25-13 winner over Streator in the second semifinal.

[ Photos from Dixon vs. Ottawa regional volleyball ]

Trailing for much of the first set, Dixon rallied to tie the score 14-14 and 16-16 before scoring nine of the final 11 points. The Duchesses then jumped out to a 10-3 lead to open the second set and never looked back.

“I think we came out and didn’t really know what to expect. We just kind of pushed through, found what worked, and worked together and pushed through the rest of the game,” Dixon senior setter Sydney Hargrave said. “Then we really just came out strong in the second set. We really wanted it, so we used what we’ve been working for and kind of just put it together.

“I feel like this gave win us a little push that we needed, and we’re ready to go Thursday.”

Dixon (22-11) rallied from deficits of 11-5 and 12-7 in the first set, and a kill by Madyson Tichler and three straight points from Morgan Hargrave on Ottawa errors got the Duchesses within 12-11. They took their first lead at 14-13 on an Ella Govig kill, but the Pirates (12-21-2) got a kill from Mel Pries and back-to-back hitting errors by Dixon to retake the lead at 16-14.

A block by Joey Brumbly and an ace by Sydney Hargrave tied it 16-16 and ignited the Duchesses’ closing run. Govig and Olivia Cox spiked kills, Sydney Hargrave tipped a kill to force an Ottawa timeout with Dixon up 19-16, then Govig stuffed a block and tipped a kill for a 21-16 lead.

“I think that we realized what we needed to do. We were kind of a little nervous, it could’ve been our last game, but in the end we picked it up and were able to bring it back,” Govig said. “We brought the energy back to our side. They started out really hot, but once we brought that on our side, that’s what we needed to do to win.”

A service error made it 21-17, but Brumbly smashed a kill and served an ace for a 23-17 lead. Ottawa got a kill from Ryleigh Stevenson, but back-to-back hitting errors on the Pirates ended the set.

“I think they weren’t really ready for us to come out like that,” Ottawa coach Jen Crum said. “But I think that’s why they’re a solid team and they’re up there in the seeding is because they probably have the ability to fight back after falling into a deficit there in the beginning. That’s what tells you why teams are where they are in the postseason.”

Govig stuffed blocks on the first two points of the second set, then she added a kill a few points later to make it 5-1 Dixon. Morgan Hargrave had a kill for an 8-2 lead, then Cox spiked a kill before a Pirates hitting error stretched the lead to 10-3.

Three straight Dixon errors made it 10-6, but Tichler ripped a kill, then two more Ottawa errors made it 13-6 Dixon. Olivia Evola had two kills around a Haley Waddell ace to bring the Pirates back within 13-10, but a net violation and a hitting error gave Dixon the momentum back, and Sydney Hargrave spiked a kill and Morgan Hargrave served two aces in a three-point span to give the Duchesses a 20-10 lead.

“Everyone did their job tonight, and when we all do that, we can all get hyped for each other,” Govig said. “We’ve worked so hard, and it paid off, and we could see it out there. We were so happy, in our gym, in our environment, of course we’re going to feed off each other. It was amazing.”

The teams traded errors for the next few points, then Ottawa tried to spark one last run with a dig by Reese Burgwald that landed on the Dixon side for a kill. But after a Dixon error cut the Pirates’ deficit to 22-15, Sydney Hargrave had a perfectly timed and placed dump kill, then Govig stuffed a block before one last Ottawa error closed out the match.

Sydney Hargrave had eight assists, three kills, three digs, a block, 10 points and two aces, and Govig led the way with six kills and five blocks for Dixon. Cox had four blocks and two kills, Tichler added two kills and five digs, and Hanna Lengquist finished with eight digs and four assists. Natalie Davidson and Morgan Hargrave each had 11 digs, and Brumbly finished with six digs, a kill, a block and an ace.

Ottawa opened the match with a block from Pries and kills by Alyssa Malmassari and Skylar Dorsey for a 3-0 lead, then Pries, Stevenson and Ayla Dorsey all smacked kills to take a 6-4 lead. Stevenson and Evola spiked kills for a 9-5 lead, then Skylar Dorsey served an ace to stretch it to 11-5 before Dixon started its comeback.

Stevenson had four kills, and Pries added three kills and a block for the Pirates. Evola finished with six assists, four kills and seven points, Skylar Dorsey had five assists, five points, an ace and a kill, and Wadell served three points and an ace.

“I was very happy with serve receive and defense, I thought they were killing it and doing a good job,” Crum said. “Our hitters were really trying to do their best, and that was the place we struggled with tonight was hitting errors, and I think in the end that’s kind of what did us in.

“Ultimately, the girls came out fighting, and they’re learning as they go. And next year we’ll just learn from this and keep moving forward.”