St. Charles East looked as if it could have used a pallet of tissues after their 4A third-place game. Imagine how much they would have needed if they lost.
The Saints closed out their careers with a 25-15, 25-19 sweep of Libertyville. They trailed only once in the match.
“It’s just really exciting to have this happen to me in my senior year,” said middle hitter Courtney Sjostrom, her voice thick with emotion. “I just really love this team. It’s hard to let it end. And I’m really happy it ended on a great note.”
Some didn’t expect each to reach .500 this season. The Saints, who lost 4 of their last 5 matches of the regular season, finished 29-13 and collected their first trophy since the 2001 state championship team.
“People didn’t expect us to get this far, but we didn’t want to leave each other,” said senior libero Alex Coello. “So we made it happen.”
On the flip side, Libertyville (34-8) was more upbeat after garnering its first state trophy in its first downstate trip.
“It was a great experience,” said senior Ali Haws. “The worst part of this weekend was this was the last time I’d be able to play with this group of girls. I’m so proud of everyone that we got this far.”