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Alter trips Tipp again in volleyball regional semi

Knights struggle early but regain form to post a  four-set victory.

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By Debbie Juniewicz, Contributing Writer 1:19 AM Friday, November 6, 2009

WILMINGTON – The Alter Knights were loose and dancing on the bus before their match, but still had to shake off some jitters once they stepped onto the court.

The Knights overcame a shaky start to defeat Tippecanoe 22-25, 26-24, 25-18, 25-16 in the Division II regional girls volleyball semifinals at Wilmington High School Thursday, Nov. 5.

“It was an emotional match and we knew it would be,” Alter coach Tina Jasinowski said. “It’s good to have emotion if it gets you fired up, but it can also get in the way.”

The Knights struggled early with five missed serves and six hitting errors in the first set against the rival Red Devils. Tippecanoe, which also fell to Alter in the regional last season, capitalized and took a one-set lead.

“There were some nerves and we weren’t executing well,” Alter libero Kristin Ignozzi said. “But we know how to dig ourselves out.”

The hole almost got a lot deeper as the Red Devils were a point away from a two-set lead, up 24-23. The resilient Knights regained the serve after a Tipp error and the Alter blockers came up big with back-to-back points to close out the set, 26-24.

The Red Devils could never maintain the momentum in the final two sets as the Knights handed them their second loss of the season. For the second consecutive year, Alter was the only blemish on the Tippecanoe record. The Red Devils finished 24-2 with their first and final losses coming at the hands of the Knights.

“They (Alter) played well, they made us make mistakes,” Tippecanoe coach Pat Carus said. “I’ve known some of their players since they were kids and I have all the respect in the world for them, but I’m tired of losing to them.”

Jasinowski knows it wasn’t a pretty win but she doesn’t mind.

“I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, I’ll take it any way we can get it at this point in the season because it means we move on,” the veteran coach, in her 14th season, said. “I knew we had the skills and it would come down to how mentally tough we were.”

Alter setter/outside hitter Megan Courtney led the Knights in kills (14) and digs (23) but it was a balanced team effort with Jackie Kohls and Kellie Joseph each pounding in a team-leading three aces, Abby Grimes posting 20 assists and Kelly Westerkamp tallying seven blocks.

The Knights will face a familiar foe in the regional final as it will be a rematch of last year’s final against Logan Elm. The undefeated Braves, now 27-0, outlasted Chaminade Julienne 26-24, 23-25, 26-24, 25-18, in the other regional semifinal Thursday.

After taking the second set, the Eagles squandered a 24-22 lead and lost the third set. While CJ battled in the fourth set, Logan Elm senior middle hitter Paige Penrod sealed the deal with her 34th kill.

“Our lack of experience just killed us,” Eagles coach Dennis Hale said. “We’re young, even our seniors are first-year varsity players, and, at this level, there’s no substitute for experience.”

The D-II final is Saturday, Nov. 7 at 2 p.m. followed by the D-III final between Fenwick and Versailles at 4 p.m.

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