Benet junior outside hitter Ava Novak had no fear of the unknown.
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Neither did her teammates.
The Redwings traveled for more than two hours to play O’Fallon in the Class 4A Moline Supersectional on Friday.
“I had never even heard of the school before,” Novak said. “It was great to play a team you’re not familiar with because it just shows that we can bring the same energy to any team we play.
“We really showed that today by starting out strong and really applying the pressure early on.”
Indeed, Benet roared out to an early 10-point lead and rolled to a 25-10, 25-16 victory.
The Redwings (36-4) are two wins away from capturing their fifth state championship since 2011. They will play Barrington (39-1) in the state semifinals at Redbird Arena in Normal at 7 p.m. Friday.
Senior outside hitter Gabija Staniskis paced the offense with nine kills, and Novak added seven. Benet’s 6-foot-4 middles — senior Annie Eschenbach and freshman Lynney Tarnow — combined for seven kills and three blocks.
“I felt we were pretty well-balanced,” Benet coach Brad Baker said. “We established our middles, got them going, and then our outsides combined for 16 kills, so they were good.
“When you’re more dependent on one person and that person has an off night, then you’re in trouble. We have multiple kids that we can rely on at any time.”
Facing an unknown opponent, the Redwings relied on their usual routine to prepare.
“We got there two hours early,” Novak said. “Wherever we play, we get there fairly early so we can have a ton of time in the locker room getting fired up, singing our favorite songs, so we keep that routine going.”
The Redwings were coming off their best performance of the season, a straight-set thrashing of Naperville North in a sectional final on Wednesday. The Xavier-bound Eschenbach made sure her younger teammates continued their excellent play.
“Obviously, this is the game to go to state, so I was trying to tell them if we want it, we have to show it now,” Eschenbach said. “We have to come out confident and show this team that we want it more, that we’re ready for state.
“Our energy is one of the biggest parts of our team. It kind of keeps us going. It’s been so fun, and we’re all so close, so it’s been pretty easy, honestly, to keep that high energy.”
Baker had warned his team that O’Fallon would win if the Redwings didn’t play at a high level, but he need not have worried. The Panthers (31-7) were no match for a balanced attack and strong defense.
Sophomore setter Audrey Asleson had 27 assists and 10 digs, sophomore libero Aniya Warren was brilliant again with 20 digs, and defensive specialists Morgan Asleson and Peyton Turner added nine and eight digs, respectively.
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None of Benet’s current student-athletes have played at Redbird Arena, but Eschenbach was in the stands watching when Benet won the 2019 state championship.
“The energy during those games is something that you can’t really find anywhere else in a regular-season game,” she said. “It’s going to be super fun.
“We’re all really excited. This is what we’ve been working toward the entire season, and it feels really nice to have our hard work pay off. But we all know that the work’s not done yet.”
The Redwings will face a stiff test in Barrington, which is riding a 24-match winning streak.
“We have lots of energy going into the semis,” Novak said. “We’re clicking a lot. Our goal is to win it all. I’m excited to see how we do against Barrington on Friday.”
Matt Le Cren is a freelance reporter for the Naperville Sun.