LEXINGTON, Ohio – Thursday night was supposed to be a Division II regional semifinal volleyball match, but it really resembled a boxing match.
Perkins continued to knock down Maumee time after time.
But the Panthers continued to get off the mat. They battled back from an 11-point deficit in the first set, a 2-0 set deficit, and got off the mat again in the fourth set, rallying from five down late to force a fifth set.
By the end of the fifth set, though, there were no more rallies left. Just a regional semifinal victory for Perkins as it advanced to the regional final Saturday against Gilmour Academy.
“Emotional from start to finish,” Maumee coach Lindsay Vannett said. “We started a little nervous, you could tell the nerves got to us, but once they settled in and became the team we know they can be, you saw it, it came down to who was going to finish the game.”
Tied at 10 in the fifth set, the Panthers (16-11) didn’t have an answer for Kelley Baker, who closed out the set with three kills down the stretch as Perkins won 15-13.
“Perkins got us, but I couldn’t be prouder of our kids,” Vannett said. “It’s a special group of kids, and it just sucks to see it end. Their fight and their grit and everything they’ve gone through to get here, they put it all on the floor. It came up a little short, but they worked their butts off.”
Maumee was on its heels out of the gate where nerves may have played a role in falling behind so big early.
Vannett said the rally from 11 down in the first set, 18-11, only to fall, 28-26, definitely carried over into second set.
“We talked about in the huddle that we needed to start strong, but once [Perkins] got those first couple points, we just couldn’t find the floor. You could see their confidence just shake a little bit,” Vannett said. “I think that mindset of ‘Oh crap, this happened in the first set, here we go again.’ They just couldn’t shake that feeling like they did in the first.”
Perkins (24-2) rolled to an easy 25-9 victory in the second.
Perkins coach Heath Hamilton said his team didn’t coast from there and were caught flat-footed at times in the next two sets.
“In the third, we stopped moving our feet and communicating,” Hamilton said. “Maumee, definitely in the third and fourth sets, outworked us. That was something we talked about. I don’t know if we were getting tired, but our feet weren’t moving as much as they needed to be. So again, with serve receive, that was a big part of it. Our feet weren’t getting there, and we were reaching a little bit.”
Tied at 15 in third set, Maumee pulled away with a 25-20 victory in part to the capable swings of Brynn Brown, who had four kills down the stretch.
In the fourth set, Maumee had to rally again. This time the Panthers were down 20-15 before a 10-2 run forced a final deciding set.
In the fifth set, Perkins pulled ahead 4-0, causing Vannett to call a timeout.
“The momentum had swung in our favor. The girls were very energized. They were confident, and they were feeling it,” Vannett said. “The first couple points happened the way they did, and you saw it rattle them again. That’s why I called that quick timeout.
“‘Guys, it’s no big deal. You’ve got to handle it.’ They bounced back and gave us a chance to win at the end.”
Brown and Katelyn Owens hammered Maumee back into the set with seven kills between them to take a 10-9 lead before Perkins finished the Panthers off.
“It was a very up and down match. The momentum swung, and it swung back. Overall, both teams fought hard, and they left it all on the court,” Hamilton said. “I’m proud of these guys for pushing through.”
Brown finished with 25 kills on the night and three block assists. Jolie Sobb had 17 kills, four aces, and 35 digs for the Panthers. Owens had 10 kills and three block assists. Maddie Kontak had 22 digs, and Camy Wedge had 25 assists in the loss.
The Pirates were led at the net by Baker’s 23 kills and two blocks. Elizabeth Ziegler had 15 kills, and Emma Manley added 12 kills of her own. Mollie McVeigh dished out 50 assists, and Cameron Kauman had 28 digs.
First Published November 6, 2020, 4:07 a.m.
