Carmel’s Bella Lucero knows how it must have looked when Lakes won the first set of their Class 3A regional championship match on Thursday night.
The Corsairs had already lost to top-seeded Lakes twice, both in straight sets, during the regular season.
“I bet a lot of people were doubting us after that first set,” Lucero said. “But we know the makeup of our team, and we know that we would not give up without a fight.
“We have too many seniors who did not want to lose to Lakes for the third time and who did not want to have their season end going quietly.”
Lucero played like it, recording all eight of her kills in the second and third sets, as fourth-seeded host Carmel rallied for a 22-25, 25-18, 25-17 victory against the Eagles in Mundelein.
Carmel (18-19) will play second-seeded Belvidere North (31-6) in the Woodstock North Sectional semifinals at 6 p.m. Monday.
Lucero, a senior outside hitter, said the Corsairs had their ups and downs this season, particularly in the East Suburban Catholic Conference, but stuck together.
“We play a tough schedule in our conference and some good nonconference matches, so we know those hard matches were going to get us ready for the postseason,” she said. “Even when we dropped the first set, we knew we still had the ability to come back if we played together as a team.”
Carmel’s Abigail Sullivan, who had nine kills and four blocks, agreed with Lucero.
“We have some seniors who have been through a lot over the past two seasons, and one of the things we’ve learned is that if you keep playing hard, good things can happen,” Sullivan said. “I guess it is tough to beat a team three times in one season.”
Carmel took control of the match against Lakes (23-10) by jumping out to big leads in the second and third sets.
“We really picked up our defense, and our girls up front, Lucero and Sullivan, started making some big plays,” Carmel coach David Pazely said.
Lakes didn’t go quietly, cutting Carmel’s 16-5 lead in the third set to three points. But Carmel closed out the match behind Ashley Villalobos’ serving and Lucero’s hitting. Villalobos racked up 14 service points, including three aces.
“We knew (Lakes) would make a run at us in that third game because they are too good of a team,” Lucero said. “We just needed to keep our poise and keep doing what we were doing well in those second and third sets.”
Lakes coach Sarah Yeager, a Carmel graduate, praised the Corsairs’ intensity in their rally.
“They played with a lot of heart,” she said. “I thought we did, too, but it just wasn’t meant to be.
“I told our girls after the match that they really had a great season by finishing with more than 20 wins and winning our conference. They have a lot to be proud of.”
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Lakes played without senior outside hitter Jillian Ellenwood, who suffered a knee injury last week and was scheduled for surgery Thursday afternoon. She had 139 kills this season.
“We heard she got out of surgery fine, and I know her presence was with us,” Yeager said. “We sure could have used her, but things happen good and bad during a season, and this was one of the really bad things.”
Carmel also overcame adversity this season. Pazely said his team has found a way to get stronger.
“We definitely had a lot of ups and downs,” he said. “But the message this season has been to continue to work hard and to be better tomorrow than we were today. I think we have done that this season.”
Darren Day is a freelance reporter for the News-Sun.