Huntley plays invite perfectly

E-mail this story

Print this story

Share

For more high school sports, visit McHenryCountySports.com

HUNTLEY – The Huntley girls volleyball team went 5-0 and did not lose a game en route to winning its own 25th annual Huntley Invitational, which concluded Saturday.

The Red Raiders defeated Marian Central, 25-8, 25-22, in the Platinum Bracket championship match.

Huntley sophomore libero Amy Dion rallied her teammates after every play and encouraged them throughout the final match.

“My libero played a great match, not only in the finals but in the semifinals, too,” Huntley coach Michelle Jakubowski said.

Dion was determined not to let the ball hit the floor, even if it meant doing a backward summersault or running all the way across the court to do it. She finished with a team-high 45 digs for the five matches, and her team scored 40 points while she was serving.

Nonetheless, Dion was modest about her contributions and shared the credit.

“I knew that if I picked a ball up that one of my teammates was going to get it over because they have my back, and we all have each other’s backs,” Dion said.

Dion also provided a positive presence. No matter what was going on, she had a smile on her face, and the rest of the Raiders seemed to feed off her enthusiasm.

“Once one person falls, the whole team falls, so I feel like I have to keep our team spirit up because that’s what we need to do to win,” she said.

Huntley statistical leaders for the tournament included Ashley Smith with 26 kills and Amanda Carroll with 75 assists.

Marian was led in the tournament by Mary Kate Manning with 23 kills, Dena Ott with 32 digs and Abby Gilleland with 63 assists.

Marian coach Laura Watling said she was proud of the way her girls played throughout the tournament.

“Overall we played really well today,” she said. “It would have been nicer to see us come out strong for the championship game, because we didn’t, but we did fight back, and I’m proud of that.”

Jacobs finished ninth, defeating Johnsburg in the Silver Bracket final, 23-25, 25-23, 25-18. Jacobs was led by Taylor Lesner’s 45 kills.

“They played hard, and I think they did very well,” Jacobs coach Lisa Dwyer said.

Johnsburg coach Sue Feely also said her team played well, especially considering the teams they faced.

“We played awesome and up at a high level, so I’m very happy with how the girls did,” she said.

Johnsburg was led by Aubrey Wanta’s 25 kills in the tournament.