Volleyball: Newman rallies past Fulton to win 1A Polo Regional championship

POLO ­– Saying that everything clicked into perfect place for the Newman Comets in Game 3 of Thursday’s 1A Polo Regional championship might sound cliché.

Cliché or not, it would also be correct.

The Comets reeled off 12 of the last 14 points in a rotation that featured junior hitters Jess Johns and Kennedy Rowzee in the front row to rally past the Fulton Steamers for a 21-25, 25-20, 25-14 win. Newman advances to Monday’s 1A Forreston Sectional semifinal match against Newark at 7 p.m.

[ Photos from Newman vs. Fulton in 1A Polo Regional final ]

“We ended with the right rotation there,” Newman’s Debbi Kelly said. “With Jess and Kennedy in the front, and getting some good passes to them. The setters did a nice job of getting them the ball when they needed to, and our passing improved as the night went on. It was a good way to end, playing our style of volleyball.

“We got that one rotation with Jess and Kennedy together, and we capitalized on it. That’s why we have to have good serving while they are in that front row.”

The Comets took a 15-11 lead in Game 3 after Fulton junior Brooklyn Brennan’s serve went into the net. The Steamers scored only three more points, while Johns had three kills and Rowzee had two kills in the match-ending run for Newman (26-7-1).

The Comets took over the serve for the final time leading 23-14. Junior Addison Foster served an ace to set up match point, and then after a long volley, Sophia Ely set Johns for the match-ending kill.

“It felt really good in the third game,” Foster said. “I think we had a lot of energy from winning the second set. We took a step back [after the first game] and realized that we had to go back to basics and do what works for us, like getting it up to our strong hitters.”

Foster was pivotal in the turning point of the match, taking over the serve in Game 2 with Newman trailing 15-12. She held serve for seven points, including two aces, to give Newman an 18-16 lead.

“I have been working on where to place the ball when I am serving, and I think it really helped me out tonight,” Foster said. “And I just had to remember to take deep breaths and keep calm with all the nerves.”

“We’ve preached serving all year,” Kelly said. “We got to keep our serves in, and the more we keep them in, the more confident we are. When we place the serve well and the ball starts spinning down, it’s harder to receive.”

The score was tied at 18 and 20 before the Comets reeled off the last five points of Game 2, including two kills by Ely and a few errors by the Steamers.

The duo of Johns (15 kills) and Rowzee (13) combined for 28 kills off of sets from Katie Grennan (20 assists) and Molly Olson (11 assists).

The night didn’t start great for the Comets. Brennan held serve for the Steamers for the first seven points of the match, including two aces. Strong serving and a few timely hits helped Fulton build a lead as large as eight points at 17-9 after a block by Ava Bowen.

Newman fought back, pulling as close as two points 19-17, and then again at 20-18, 22-20 and 23-21. An official’s call reversed a Newman point at 23-21, setting Fulton up with game point. Reese Dyskstra did the rest with a kill for Fulton to end the first game.

“I think it was really our mindset that it could be our last game and that we have to push as hard as we can,” Foster said of the Comets’ rally. “Even when we get down, we have to try and get out of those holes no matter what.

“I think we had a lot of nerves because after we won our game [Wednesday] night, we were watching Fulton, and they looked like a really good team. So, we were going to try some new things, and I think we were a little timid about it.”

Brennan did a little bit of everything for Fulton with six kills, a block, 11 assists, 13 digs and 13 service points. Miraya Pessman added seven kills, eight assists, 12 digs and a block. Annaka Hackett had five kills and eight digs, Bowen finished with two kills, two blocks and two assists, Dykstra added four kills, four digs and a blocks, and Resse Germann chipped in 10 digs for the Steamers.