9th Region QFs: NDA, St. Henry, Beechwood, Ryle move on

Certain trends have become commonplace in the 9th Region. Every year since 2020, Notre Dame, Ryle and St. Henry have won their district tournaments then the 9th Region quarterfinal game. A fifth different team in that same span will join them this year as the Beechwood Tigers outlasted the Highlands Bluebirds to take that fourth semifinal spot Tuesday, back at Ryle.   The first game Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. puts Notre Dame against host Ryle and the second game at 7:30 p.m. sees Beechwood face St. Henry. Beechwood last made it this far in 2017, beating Ryle in the region quarterfinals.   Game 1: Notre Dame 3, Dixie Heights 0 (25-3, 25-13, 25-6)   Notre Dame (27-7) unsurprisingly dominated this game with the four players standing 6-1 and above on the front line. Dixie Heights had no answers for [player_tooltip player_id='312234' first='Audrey' last='Dyas'], [player_tooltip player_id='727143' first='Makayla' last='Roose'], [player_tooltip player_id='571992' first='Katie' last='Zwick'] and [player_tooltip player_id='484250' first='Teagan' last='Kondik']. [player_tooltip player_id='379687' first='Lizzy' last='Larkins'] and [player_tooltip player_id='798218' first='Ellie' last='Osterkamp'] put balls on target for those four in addition to [player_tooltip player_id='507601' first='Grace' last='Portwood'] after nice first touches.   Dixie Heights made things interesting in the second set, but could not score in double digits in the other two sets. [player_tooltip player_id='557889' first='Payton' last='Bromley'] made some nice digs and with [player_tooltip player_id='620750' first='Bailey' last='McQuinlin'] and others taking some nice swings. However, the Colonels could not sustain an offensive rhythm against the Notre Dame defense.   Dixie Heights graduates five seniors. They are [player_tooltip player_id='771865' first='Maddie' last='Kelly'], Brooke Adams, [player_tooltip player_id='603784' first='Madison' last='Offner'], Grace Reynolds and Caitlyn Shattuck.   Game 2: Ryle 3, Newport Central Catholic 0 (25-12, 25-18, 25-17)   Down [player_tooltip player_id='212347' first='Morgan' last='Heater'] and [player_tooltip player_id='781286' first='Bridget' last='Burns'] as the result of injuries, the Raiders saw other players step forward to take care of the Thoroughbreds.   In this game, [player_tooltip player_id='712121' first='Ashley' last='Towner'] along with the likes of [player_tooltip player_id='731690' first='Layna' last='Wilkinson'] had some sound swings along with [player_tooltip player_id='891333' first='Pyper' last='Sandman'] for Ryle (22-13). [player_tooltip player_id='774786' first='Clare' last='Holtzapfel'] and [player_tooltip player_id='767630' first='Morgan' last='Gehring'] handled the setting duties well with [player_tooltip player_id='486910' first='Ria' last='Furuta'], [player_tooltip player_id='334217' first='Francesca' last='Hansel'] and Adallee Schoborg holding things down defensively.   The Thoroughbreds (19-17) saw [player_tooltip player_id='484445' first='Jordyn' last='Reckers'] along with [player_tooltip player_id='693877' first='Piperlyn' last='Kramer'] and [player_tooltip player_id='540518' first='Paytin' last='Reckers'] give good efforts defensively. [player_tooltip player_id='512719' first='Charlotte' last='Stevie'] then made some sound sets to the likes of [player_tooltip player_id='882125' first='Miley' last='Wolf'], [player_tooltip player_id='891631' first='Bella' last='Schaber'], [player_tooltip player_id='743567' first='Maura' last='Franzen'], [player_tooltip player_id='776882' first='Kolbey' last='Kohrs'] and [player_tooltip player_id='816320' first='Maddie' last='Sandfoss'].   NewCath still recorded the first winning season since going 15-11 in 2020. The Thoroughbreds had not won 19 games in a season since 2017. They graduate three players in Kramer, [player_tooltip player_id='540518' first='Paytin' last='Reckers'] and Kara Matthews.   Game 3: Beechwood 3, Highlands 2 (25-20, 22-25, 23-25, 25-20, 15-11)   The Tigers (33-5) clawed their way back against the determined Bluebirds (23-10) and held them off in the final set.   The teams stood toe-to-toe at the net both winning their battles there. [player_tooltip player_id='484443' first='Macy' last='Armstrong'], [player_tooltip player_id='456263' first='Rachel' last='Lewandowski'] and [player_tooltip player_id='827943' first='Teegan' last='Becker'] took nice swings in the middle with [player_tooltip player_id='397726' first='Isabel' last='Bakker'] and [player_tooltip player_id='484442' first='Isabel' last='O'Brien'] takings big swings on different parts of the court with nice sets from [player_tooltip player_id='456668' first='Skylr' last='Estep']. [player_tooltip player_id='796736' first='Maggie' last='Dawson'], [player_tooltip player_id='594624' first='Kendale' last='Lair'] and [player_tooltip player_id='797739' first='Piper' last='Steinmetz'] led the Tigers defensively.   Highlands saw the best two hitters in senior [player_tooltip player_id='590640' first='Liz' last='Perkins'] and [player_tooltip player_id='590644' first='Alexis' last='Steinhauser'] along with [player_tooltip player_id='608333' first='Bella' last='Thomas']. [player_tooltip player_id='839058' first='Taylor' last='Janosick'] and Ava Ireland also took nice swings with [player_tooltip player_id='727125' first='Edy' last='Hobson'] making key blocks. Senior setters [player_tooltip player_id='503792' first='Ava' last='Muzumdar'] and Audrey Sorrentino set them up nicely. Seniors [player_tooltip player_id='276170' first='Hayden' last='Gessner'], [player_tooltip player_id='827206' first='Madison' last='Barlow'] and Mia Perron laid everything on the line in the loss.   In the decisive fifth set tied 8-8, O'Brien landed two straight kills to put Beechwood up 10-8. After a long hit, Lewandowski landed a block to put the Tigers up 12-10, prompting a Highlands timeout. Ireland landed a kill for Highlands to trim the margin to 12-11, but Lewandowski and Bakker put balls down before Armstrong finished it with a kill to the middle.   Highlands graduates seven seniors in [player_tooltip player_id='791552' first='Amelia' last='Frommeyer'], Perkins, Muzumdar, Sorrentino, Barlow, Gessner and Barlow. They helped the Bluebirds win their ninth straight district championship.   Game 4: St. Henry 3, Conner 0 (25-23, 27-25, 25-16)   The Crusaders made enough plays to win the first two sets then pulled away to take the third to make it to the region semifinals for the fifth year in a row.   St. Henry (23-15) saw [player_tooltip player_id='451098' first='Madi' last='Demler'] and [player_tooltip player_id='612108' first='Madelyn' last='Keipert'] make quality sets. Demler, [player_tooltip player_id='709517' first='Violet' last='Main'], [player_tooltip player_id='805561' first='Gianna' last='Butler'] and even Keipert took big rips throughout the game. [player_tooltip player_id='610406' first='Kenadi' last='Sieg'] made the simple and tough passes consistently for St. Henry recording her 1000th career dig in the process. [player_tooltip player_id='792902' first='Caroline' last='Tabeling'] and [player_tooltip player_id='727147' first='Molly' last='Blackburn'] also had big saves in the game.   Conner (26-10) tried to involve 6-2 sophomore sensation [player_tooltip player_id='579836' first='Charlotte' last='Patton'] as much as possible. [player_tooltip player_id='484447' first='Shylyn' last='Koerber'] and [player_tooltip player_id='782751' first='Alexis' last='Kampsen'] landed good sets and took sound rips along with [player_tooltip player_id='602465' first='Annika' last='Berwanger']. [player_tooltip player_id='896081' first='Rhys' last='Everett'] had some big blocks with [player_tooltip player_id='887150' first='Makena' last='Marks'], [player_tooltip player_id='888345' first='Addy' last='Back'] and Aurora Sandfoss giving great effort on defense for the Cougars.   Conner graduates four seniors in Berwanger, [player_tooltip player_id='842238' first='Chrissy' last='Minter'], Savannah Miller and Emma Migliorelli.   Notable Performances    Roose has great footwork on the floor that draws blockers away from her teammates. Roose deposits balls to different parts of the court from both the pins and middle. Roose also uses her size well to form good double blocks. Roose said she and her teammates trust each other, adding players need to have the mindset of playing their game so she does not usually get nervous. Roose had five kills in Notre Dame's win over Dixie Heights.     Towner has turned into a sound six-rotation player for the Raiders. Towner took a number of sound swings in the win over NewCath. Towner uses her size well to form sound double blocks forcing NewCath to hit a number of balls high and wide. Towner said she's been listening to her coaches on tips and improving in different ways when asked about turning into a six-rotation player. Towner had eight kills and two aces in the win over NewCath.     Armstrong (pictured) has used her size well all season to help the Tigers control the net and did so again. Armstrong waits for hitters to go up then launches up with good timing. Armstrong is one of several hitters Estep can rely on to put balls down. Armstrong is very coachable. Armstrong said the next ball mentality is good whether you win or lose that ball. Armstrong added volleyball is a game of mistakes so it's important to have the mind of a goldfish, learning from mistakes and moving on.     Dawson reads hitters well and squares her arms up to balls to make clean two to three-point passes and jumpstart the tough Beechwood offense. Dawson made a number of quality out of system passes to allow the Beechwood hitters to take good swings. Dawson noted she played with and against some of the Highlands players. Dawson said facing high-level teams such as Holy Cross (Louisville) and Notre Dame have helped her feel calm under pressure.     The versatile O'Brien once again helped the Tigers reach another goal. O'Brien got back up quickly when knocked down throughout the game. She lands quality hits from all six spots on the floor including pipe plays. O'Brien eyes the opposite side of the floor, listens to teammates then lets balls rip. O'Brien also tracked down a number of balls that Beechwood eventually scored on. O'Brien said being surrounded by good teammates is one of the best feelings in the world.     Perkins had a wonderful game for the Bluebirds. She landed some crosses and line shots on the go routes and made key digs if balls were blocked. Perkins has been a reliable hitter for the Bluebirds for years. Her leadership has clearly left an impression on the younger Highlands players.     Whether it's quality swings, sound serves, big blocks, solid first touches or timely sets, the Crusaders can rely on Demler to do it. She took a number of big rips to put balls down when the Crusaders badly needed kills. Demler has shown her leadership well helping St. Henry make it back to the 9th Region semifinals. Demler said the Crusaders realized they have what it takes to succeed and the team chemistry helped them build up confidence and overcome the rough patch late in the season.     Main is turning into a nice six-rotation player for the Crusaders. She makes quality passes in the back row then played big roles both offensively and defensively at the net for St. Henry. Main was tough on the quicks in the win over Conner. She also kept Conner out of system with some big serves. Main said the Crusaders have come out overlooking opponents at the end of the regular season because they've handled various teams in the past, but they've come out stronger in the past couple games.    Note from the Writer   Mike Graham has been writing for Prep Dig for nearly two years and has enjoyed getting to know the volleyball scenes in both Kentucky and Ohio. If you liked the story, please copy and paste to X (formerly Twitter) and Facebook. You may also follow us at @prepdigkentucky or @prepdigoh on Instagram in addition to @PrepDigKy or @PrepDigOH on X. If you feel someone in Kentucky or Ohio needs coverage or even have feedback on the Kentucky rankings, please email Mike at pnmikeg@yahoo.com. You may also follow him on X @GMCgrah or Instagram @g.michaelgraham. Subscriptions give you access to exclusive content. For a 30% discount, enter code graham30 at checkout.

Certain trends have become commonplace in the 9th Region. Every year since 2020, Notre Dame, Ryle and St. Henry have won their district tournaments then the 9th Region quarterfinal game. A fifth different team in that same span will join them this year as the Beechwood Tigers outlasted the Highlands Bluebirds to take that fourth semifinal spot Tuesday, back at Ryle.