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St. Mary’s tops Cascade with thrilling comeback By Danny Penza Oct 18, 2022 10:21 PM A A 9 View all photos After a rough opening set against Cascade Christian, St. Mary’s head coach Katie Miller delivered a very simple and succinct message to her volleyball players to try and turn the tide on Tuesday. “Our coach was just like, ‘Hey, we’re here to have fun, so in the end it’s just us and the team and we’re playing a regular game, just go out there and play your best,’ — and that’s what we did,” said St. Mary’s junior Emma Johnston. Indeed they did. St. Mary’s not only won the next set to pull even with Cascade Christian, the Crusaders were able to maintain their drive in a five-set Far West League thriller over their crosstown rivals — 13-25, 25-20, 20-25, 25-21, 15-9 — in the regular-season finale for both schools. “The first set was a little rough,” said St. Mary’s senior Kelsey Dunn, “but we were just getting into the groove of things and once we pulled it together and played as a team, I think that’s what won it for us tonight. “Definitely energy is the key. It was a tough one, but we played really well tonight.” Both schools entered with identical 8-1 records in the FWL, with sole possession of second place up for grabs behind unbeaten Coquille. With the Crusaders’ win, St. Mary’s (16-5, 9-1 FWL) finished a game ahead of third-place Cascade Christian (15-8, 8-2), which could potentially be looking at a play-in match against an opponent to be determined on Saturday. Brackets for the Class 3A state playoffs freeze later in the day Saturday. “St. Mary’s came out strong as they always do,” said Cascade Christian junior Madison Todd, who led the Challengers with 16 digs and added 15 kills. “We’re rivals and it’s tough every set. They just came out strong tonight and we’re hoping to learn from this opportunity and get ready for playoffs.” The Crusaders were able to force a decisive set thanks to a furious comeback in the fourth. Trailing 15-8 after an ace from Cascade Christian’s Sydney Shipman, St. Mary’s strung together five straight points with senior libero Albie Borovansky on the service line to pull within one at 15-14. Moments later, the Crusaders tied it on a big solo block from Maddie Ward and then took a 19-16 lead on a pair of kills from Johnston and another from Ward, one that barely fell inside the line. Cascade’s Poppy Freeman tied it at 21 with one of her team-leading 18 kills, but the Crusaders got kills from Dunn and freshman Ada Bernard to close it out. “We were playing a little individually at first, but we came together and played as a team,” Dunn said of what changed for the better for St. Mary’s. Added Johnston: “We were incredibly excited, so having that win there (in the second set) was the most amazing feeling ever. As a team, we carried that into the following sets and that was probably the best thing that happened to us.” St. Mary’s rode the late momentum right into the fifth set, building a 10-3 lead on Cascade Christian. The Challengers pulled with three points at 12-9 on a kill from Todd, but the Crusaders rolled off the last three points to close out the comeback win, with Dunn ending things on her ninth and final kill of the night. “I saw the block to a double block and there was nobody there, so I just tipped it right there,” Dunn said of the final kill. “It was surreal and it was really great moment.” How things ended was a stark contrast from how the first set played out. It was Cascade Christian on the front foot early, as the Challengers built a quick 11-3 lead after kills from Todd and Molly Griffin. Todd’s cross-court kill made it a 10-point advantage at 16-6, with a block from Todd and sophomore Julia Brehm capping a nine-point run that put the Challengers ahead 22-6. “I think it’s just little errors that we made, little inconsistencies that we struggled with,” said Todd of what changed from the first and second sets, “but they just exposed those.” St. Mary’s used another fast start to take an early 8-2 lead in the third set, but Cascade Christian pulled even at 12-12 thanks to a Griffin block after a long rally and another Todd kill. The Challengers then used a seven-point run to take the lead for good at 24-17 on kills by Freeman and Claire Knips. Griffin finished with 38 assists, while Knips added six kills for the Challengers. “We played well,” said Todd. “Not as good as we could have, but it just revealed to us what we can do.” Dunn also had five blocks and four aces in the win. Bernard finished with five kills, while Ward had four kills and three blocks. Sydney Holdermann recorded four aces, while Borovansky chipped in 14 digs and Crusaders setter Kaitlyn Hansen had 32 assists. “I think we all played really well as a team,” said Johnston. “We started working together and communicating more — and it really worked out for us in the end. I think we just came together as a team and it worked perfectly.” Reach reporter Danny Penza at 541-776-4469 or [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @penzatopaper. St Mary's Emma Johnston makes a hit for a point against Cascade Christian in Medford Tuesday. [Andy Atkinson / Mail Tribune] St Mary's Kelsey Dunn makes a hit for a point against Cascade Christian in Medford Tuesday. [Andy Atkinson / Mail Tribune] Cascade Christian celebrates after winning the 3rd set against St Mary's in Medford Tuesday. [Andy Atkinson / Mail Tribune] Cascade Christian's Ellie Harrington serves an ace against St Mary's in Medford Tuesday. [Andy Atkinson / Mail Tribune] St Mary's Kelsey Dunn makes a hit for a point against Cascade Christian in Medford Tuesday. [Andy Atkinson / Mail Tribune] Cascade Christian's Annika Byers dives to save the ball against St Mary's in Medford Tuesday. [Andy Atkinson / Mail Tribune] Cascade Christian's Julia Brehm and Poppy Freeman go up for a block against St Mary's in Medford Tuesday. [Andy Atkinson / Mail Tribune] Cascade Christian's Poppy Freeman makes a hit for a point against St Mary's in Medford Tuesday. [Andy Atkinson / Mail Tribune] St Mary's Kelsey Dunn makes a hit for a point against Cascade Christian in Medford Tuesday. [Andy Atkinson / Mail Tribune]