Providence volleyball coach Nan Airola had no idea how her team would play Saturday in the Class AA Providence regional final after a 10-day layoff, but she had a pretty good idea how Minooka would play.
The Celtics might have been a little rusty after their inactivity, thanks to receiving a forfeit from Plainfield South on Wednesday because of a teacher’s strike, but they had to knock the rust off in a hurry.
Minooka lived up to Airola’s fears and put forth a big effort before falling 15-5, 11-15, 15-9.
Providence takes a 30-7 record into the Lincoln-Way sectional against Lincoln-Way East (26-11), while Minooka ended its season with a 30-6-1 record
“I’ve never been off 10 days before,” said Airola, whose team won the school’s 20th regional title and became the eighth Celtics team to win 30 games.
“But you can’t worry about that. You’ve got to have a passion to play.”
There was passion on both sides.
Jacque Huguelet served the last seven points of the first game in addition to getting nine of her 18 kills.
The second game saw Minooka, which was led by Melanie Ukovich’s 22 kills, jump to a 13-5 lead before hanging on to win.
The third game of the hour-and-a-half match saw the momentum swing back and forth.
Providence moved out to a 9-3 lead behind Huguelet and Lisa Cercello, who had 17 kills.
Minooka, behind Ukovich, closed to 9-7.
Providence pulled out to a 13-7 lead on an ace by Melanie Hatch but had to scrap for its final two points.
“We expected a good game,” said Huguelet, who plays club volleyball with Ukovich for Club Elite.
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“We didn’t expect any cakewalk. So all we could do was play our hardest and go for it.”
Reid Hanley.
Sandburg: The No. 1 host Eagles (35-2) dispatched Andrew 15-7, 15-6 behind Sarah Kwasigroch’s 29 assists and 15 digs.
Marcia Saustin and Colleen Byrne added nine and eight kills, respectively. Kari Staehlin’s 11 kills paced Andrew (18-17), which led 5-4 in Game 2 before Sandburg went on a 11-1 run.
Downers Grove South: Jaclyn Simpson’s 17 assists led No. 2 Downers South (32-4) to a 15-3, 15-1defeat of Hinsdale Central.
Warren: No. 3 Mundelein (35-2) eliminated Warren 15-9, 15-10 as Brittany Kessel tallied 27 assists and Christine Nilles added 10 kills. Julie Jackson’s eight kills led Warren (27-11).
Evergreen Park: Sarah Cullina had 19 assists to go with Cheryl Kay’s seven kills as No. 7 Mother McAuley (26-9) rolled past Evergreen Park 15-1, 15-6.
Barrington: The No. 9 host Fillies (30-6) beat Jacobs 15-3, 15-10 as Katie Esbrook had 10 kills.
Prairie Ridge: The host Wolves (32-5) toppled No. 10 Crystal Lake Central 14-16, 15-9, 15-10 as Michelle Rouley notched eight of her 14 kills in Game 3. Savannah Knowles had six kills for Central (28-9).
Libertyville: Stefanie Alde and Kelly True each turned in eight kills as Libertyville (27-9) topped Carmel 15-9, 15-11.
Lincoln-Way East: Kathryn Langheld’s 16 kills and Cami Crummie’s 15 kills helped East (26-11) outlast Central 15-10, 9-15, 15-3.
Lockport: Joliet Catholic (29-4) bested Lockport 15-13, 15-9 behind Allie Quigley’s 18 kills.
Maine South: Jenna Bell’s six kills and Kara Duffy’s five aces helped Hersey (25-9) defeat Maine South 15-7, 15-3.
St. Charles East: Kestin Erickson had 11 kills as the host Saints (25-12) ran away with their fifth straight regional title.
Field hockey
IHSFHA state championship: Daley Kirby’s goal staked New Trier (19-5-2) to an early 1-0 lead, but host Lake Forest scored three unanswered for a 3-1 victory, giving the Scouts (19-0-1) their third straight state title.
Leah Hoagland’s first-half goal tied the game 1-1 before Hilary Alley tallied her 11th and 12th goals of the year in the second half to seal the win.