NORMAL — When it came down to the nitty-gritty, it was The Ellie White Show.
Again.
This time, it was in a Class 4A state semifinal match. One that was definitely in a shaky state.
Mother McAuley coach Jen DeJarld sees it so often …
“Sometimes, I feel like we take it for granted,” she said. “That’s just what we expect from her.
“I don’t acknowledge it enough. But without a player like that on our court, our successes wouldn’t be many. She has a greatness about her.”
The Michigan recruit showed that trait when it counted the most Friday night for the Mighty Macs in a thrilling 25-27, 25-17, 25-20 victory over St. Charles East at Illinois State’s Redbird Arena.
The 5-foot-11 White led McAuley (38-3) with 23 kills and nine digs. Sydney Buchanan and Mary Kate Sheehan added four kills apiece, while Tess Hayes had 14 assists and Gigi Navarrete made 19 digs.
Kate Goudreau paced St. Charles East (33-8) with 20 kills. Sarah Musial dished out 26 assists and Lia Schneider had 19 digs.
The Mighty Macs advanced to play Benet (37-4) at 8:45 p.m. Saturday for the state championship.
The journey to the final handful of points Friday night was a wild one.
McAuley held leads of 9-1 and 10-2 in the first game before the Saints marched back and won in extras.
After getting their bearings back in the second game, the Mighty Macs found themselves with their backs to the wall, trailing 18-15 in the third game.
Enter Ellie.
The junior outside hitter put down five kills during a furious rush to the finish line. Two of them were for the final two points.
“I think our nerves were there in this match,” White said. “But we talk about fortitude. And at a point where we were down, we definitely showed grit, our true selves.
“We really pushed ourselves to our hardest. We knew when to fight back. We knew when to take it point for point. That feeling is like not any other.”
Another key figure during McAuley’s ultimate comeback was Sam Falk.
The junior defensive specialist went to the service line with the Mighty Macs down 18-16. She got them within one with an ace.
McAuley was ahead 19-18 when Falk sent a serve down the left line. The upper judge called the ball out of bounds. But a line judge called it in.
After a lengthy conversation among the officials and line judges, the point was awarded to McAuley.
Falk’s call?
“Well, I saw it in,” Falk said, smiling. “It seemed like a long time before they called it.”
The Mighty Macs didn’t waste any time wishing.
“When we were waiting for the call, we all went together as a team,” Navarrete said. “We were like, ‘Even if it’s in or out, whatever call it is, we’re going to push more.'”
White followed that point with a scorcher that landed just inside the back line.
Maeve Moonan added another point by taking a ball at the net and swiping it down for a kill. Then it was White again with the ball. It also went down.
Crisis averted. Onto the state title match.
“It’s what we’ve been pushing for this whole year,” DeJarld said. “Just digging out of that hole was really a tough thing to do against a strong team like St. Charles East. At times we just picked each other up, and our veterans did a great job.
“We’ve been talking since the beginning of the season about how much fortitude it takes to win a state championship, and the endurance and the focus it takes to get through a match like this. I’m just so proud of them for showing that.”