Notes from Division I Regional Semis

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Perrysburg &amp; Highland Break Through in Region 2</em></strong><br>Perrysburg and Highland each earned quality 3-1 wins over their regional semifinal opponents to set up a meeting with the state round on the line. For #14 ranked Perrysburg, they defeated league rival and #12 ranked Northview to improve to 20-6 overall. The Yellow Jackets are led offensively by seniors <strong>Josie Hubbard</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='141688' first='Sara' last='Pahl']</strong>. Junior middle <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='232959' first='Wrigley' last='Takats']</strong> provides great defensive pressure, leading the team with 88 total blocks to go along with 2.6 kills per set. For unranked Highland, their offense outperformed Steele in kills 54-44. Senior pin hitter <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='114557' first='Alayna' last='Tessena']</strong> had a match high 21 kills while hitting an impressive .413. She also added nine digs, four blocks, and three service aces for terrific stat line. Teammate <strong>Izzy Shank</strong> also reached double figure kills as the junior terminated 14 times in the win. Perrysburg and Highland face off on Saturday at Norwalk High School. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>GGLC's Ursuline and St. Ursula Set to Clash for Region 1 Title</em></strong><br>Ursuline, Ohio's top-ranked DI team, ended the season of league foe Mount Notre Dame rather easily on Thursday. In the 3-0 sweep, MND surpassed the 20 point mark in only one set. Ursuline continues to make a strong case as a favorite for the state crown as they have not dropped a set in the postseason yet. Ursuline utilized 37 kills along with nine blocks and four service aces to apply pressure to their opponent in a variety of ways. Individually, senior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='114516' first='Brooke' last='Bultema']</strong> was once again the premier attacker as she earned 13 kills on 19 swings with only two errors for a .579 efficiency. Defensively, she and sophomore teammate <strong>Lindy Radaszewski </strong>shared team high honors of four blocks each. In the other Region 1 seminfinal, fellow GGCL rivals St. Ursula and Seton battled each other. In what was overall a more competitive contest in this semifinal, SUA prevailed with a 3-1 win. Heading into the regional final, the Bulldogs lost both previous matches to Ursuline in league play although in the second match they came from behind to stretch it to five sets. As SUA has good pin action on both sides of the floor, it will be the middle defense and production that will likely be the x-factor as timely point scoring there will help balance the offense and open the floor for those big pin arms to get some space to swing. Defensively, if they can slow down or create discomfort for Bultema they will have a shot. SUA middles, senior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='141709' first='Ivey' last='Stocks']</strong> and junior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='114573' first='Molly' last='Dorger']</strong>, had a combined 12 kills the last time these two teams met and helped hold Bultema to 11 total kills, well below her per set average of 4.2 k/s, which also included an efficiency effort of .100. In that match though, it was sophomore <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='176087' first='Katie' last='Gielas']</strong> that lifted Ursuline's offense as she had a team high 13 kills in the win. Serve and pass. Low error offense. These are critical keys for both teams in a match that features opponents that know each other very well.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Kasun &amp; Hoying Lead Bishop Watterson</em></strong><br>The Bishop Watterson Eagles, ranked #8 in the latest Ohio DI poll, cruised to a straight set win over Dublin Jerome to advance to the Region 3 title match. Outside hitter <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='141696' first='Ava' last='Hoying']</strong> led the offense as the only attacker in double figure kills with 14 while hitting at a .297 efficiency. The 6'0 senior has been the Eagles' top producer all season at nearly four kills per set as she is approaching 900 kills for her career. As she is terminating at a career high average, she is also at a career best .300 efficiency on the season. On the defensive side, <strong>Callan Kasun</strong> led the Eagles with 16 digs as the senior bested her season average of 4.0 digs per set. At 5'8, she has good read and reaction to the ball in serve receive and defensively that allows her to pursue on balance and with good platform control. At 21-6 overall, Bishop Watterson next faces #7 ranked Oletangy Liberty for a spot in the state semifinals. These two teams faced off back in September in a non-league match as the Eagles swept the Patriots 3-0. In that match, Hoying tallied 16 kills as teammate <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='169491' first='Clara' last='Vondran']</strong> also reached double-digit kills with 11, both bettering the top scorer on the Patriots' side, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='141717' first='Claire' last='Mrukowski'] </strong>and her 10 kills in the loss. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->