Girls volleyball: Providence cruises past Crete-Monee for eighth straight regional title

NEW LENOX – As the top seed in the Class 3A Kankakee Sectional, Providence Catholic is embracing high expectations and aiming to do something big.

The Celtics have been to state once in program history, finishing third in 1988. Sophomore setter/right-side hitter Demi Carbone is confident her team can add to the trophy case.

“I think that we can make history with this team,” Carbone said. “This team is something special, and I’m really looking forward to it.”

The host Celtics took another step Thursday, rolling to a 25-10, 25-13 win over eighth-seeded Crete-Monee in the Providence Catholic Regional championship match.

Senior Payton Mandec had 12 kills and three aces, while sophomore Abbey Knight finished with seven kills to lead Providence (25-12), which won its eighth straight regional title and advances to play host and fourth-seeded Kankakee (27-8) in a sectional semifinal at 6 p.m. Monday.

Carbone and fellow sophomore Delaney Purtill added 12 assists each, senior Olivia Cosgrove had three kills and senior Morgan Hogeveen had three aces for the Celtics.

“It’s always great to win it on the home court, especially for these seniors to just enjoy the moment,” Providence coach Lee Rucinski said. “As the No. 1 seed, we have to look at this as just another step on our journey. We have a lot bigger plans than this. We’ll enjoy it [Thursday night], and then we’ve got all weekend to get ready for Monday.”

Crete-Monee (16-15) battled the Celtics early in the second game and were within 10-9 before Purtill sparked Providence with a pair of aces.

Mandec took over late, producing five kills over her team’s final 10 points.

“We knew we needed to keep our foot on the gas and push, and we did,” Mandec said.

Mandec said the Celtics are trying not to let being the top seed create extra pressure, instead making sure they have the confidence to know they earned it.

“We deserve this,” she said. “We’ve put so much hard work and so many tears into this. We’re here all the time and we deserve it.

“Now the key is our attitudes and just working together. We just need to believe in ourselves and push ourselves to the limit to go to state.”

Providence had little trouble in the opening game, racing to a 10-3 lead and cruising behind six kills from Mandec and five from Knight.

Rucinski was happy to see his team ready to go from the start.

“It’s one of those conversations we have every day in practice,” Rucinski said. “I say, ‘Ladies, you’ve never been the No. 1 seed in a sectional. You’ve played on some great club teams, but everybody’s got the bullseye. We’re everybody’s Super Bowl. You have to be on point and can’t have an off day because everyone else has nothing to lose so they’re going to give everything they’ve got.’

“I think in that first game we did a great job with that, coming out and making sure we took control.”

Providence’s team has an interesting mixture of senior leaders and talented sophomores. Carbone, who falls into the latter category, was thrilled to help the seniors have a great final memory on their home court.

“This means so much to me, especially since it’s my last season with one of my best friends, Meg Houlihan, our libero,” Carbone said. “She has helped me since my first year as a freshman on varsity. She’s really made this team feel like a family for me.”

Carbone hopes the Celtics can continue to ride that family dynamic all the way to state. The next step is winning a sectional title in Kankakee.

“We need to keep up our energy, stay positive and stay with each other,” Carbone said. “All 14 of us, if one person falls apart, we all fall apart. Staying connected is the most important thing for us.”