5 Greater Columbus storylines entering high school boys volleyball postseason
Central Ohio boys volleyball teams are officially pursuing state titles.
The postseason got underway Monday, with higher-seeded teams having first-round byes.
In Division I, Olentangy Liberty is the top seed in Region 1, followed by Pickerington North, New Albany, Olentangy Berlin and Mount Vernon. In Region 3, Thomas Worthington is the No. 1 seed, followed by Hilliard Darby, Dublin Jerome, Upper Arlington and Beavercreek.
In Division II, Region 5, St. Charles is the top seed, followed by Chillicothe, Watterson, DeSales and Westfall. DeSales won its first state title a season ago.
Here are five storylines for the postseason:
1. Olentangy Liberty using 2023 finish as motivation
Coming off a state runner-up finish, Liberty hopes to earn its first title. The Patriots won the first two sets in last year’s final before Cincinnati Moeller rallied to win 19-25, 16-25, 25-23, 25-23, 15-13.
“We came within two points of winning the state, so that’s absolutely on our mind about wanting to try to get back there and hopefully finish it out this time,” coach David Hale said.
The Patriots (21-1, 14-0 OCC-Central) suffered their only loss to Ohio power Cincinnati St. Xavier 22-25, 25-16, 25-20 on March 16, but they also beat the Bombers 16-25, 25-23, 30-28, 25-19 on April 13.
Liberty, which captured its third consecutive unbeaten league title, opens Region 1 play Wednesday at home against No. 18 Big Walnut.
“There’s a lot of strong teams who are here in our region,” Hale said. “Pickerington North has only one loss.”
Senior outside hitter Caden Whiteside leads the Patriots in kills (297) and aces (46).
“We try to cut out the bad parts of the state title match last season, but we want to keep it in mind and know what we have to fight for this year,” Whiteside said. “We have to get over that last hurdle. We might be a little bit better than last year.”
Whiteside was The Dispatch’s Boys Volleyball Athlete of the Year in 2023.
“Caden has been doing a great job, he’s been a good leader and he’s been able to make lots of plays,” Hale said. “It really helps that we have a balanced team as well. It’s not just Caden.”
Setter Connor Severson leads in assists (599), middle hitter Jack Torson leads in blocks (34) and libero Austin Mallory leads in digs (148). All three are seniors.
“This is definitely a team effort,” Whiteside said. “We all have really high-caliber players and definitely need every single one of them.”
2. Underclassmen fuel Thomas Worthington
The Cardinals (17-5) are seeking their first regional title since 1995 and first state title since 1990. Thomas reached regional finals in 2021 and 2022, losing to Liberty and Jerome, respectively.
“I’ve been to two regional finals, but we haven’t broken through yet,” seventh-year coach Brian Lawless said. “We feel good about our team. ... We have one senior on our roster (in middle blocker Ryan Gouhin) and all the guys that are playing big roles for us are sophomores or juniors.”
The Cardinals went 11-3 in the OCC-Cardinal to finish second behind Darby (13-1), but they received the top seed in Region 3 while the Panthers are second. The teams split two matches during the regular season.
Thomas opens the postseason Wednesday at home against No. 18 Clayton Northmont.
“This is where all the work that you already did the last couple of months really counts,” Lawless said.
Thomas is led by 6-foot-7 junior middle blocker Finn Rubin, who was named Region 3 Player of the Year. He leads the team in kills (164) and blocks (60).
Setter Annav Samrat leads in assists (429) and aces (38), and libero Drew Barnes leads in digs (242). Both are sophomores.
3. Hilliard Darby has high hopes
Darby enters the postseason coming off its 22nd league championship. The Panthers host No. 14 Middletown in the second round Wednesday.
“We expected to be the (No.) 1, 2 or 3 seed,” coach Evan Bell said. “We try not to put a lot of stock into that because if you want to be the best no matter your seed, you have to beat the best. Regardless of where we landed, we knew that we have to be playing good ball together as one unit, and we’re real confident in our ability.”
The Panthers are seeking their third state title. They won it all in 2015 and 2013.
“The difference between this season and the last couple is we feel like we have a good sense of experience and leadership, led by (seniors) Aidan Kolb and Mason Heit,” Bell said. “Both of those cats have been starting for us for four years. ... These guys are so special, and they have so much experience. They’ve been there.”
Kolb, a libero, leads Darby in kills with 212 and has added 132 digs, 19 aces and 11 blocks.
“This program has the most special culture in the state,” Kolb said. “Everyone does things as a team. It’s not full of individuals.”
A setter, Heit has a team-high 645 assists along with 115 digs and 29 aces.
4. Young New Albany program feeling optimistic
In its fourth season, New Albany (18-4) opens the Region 1 postseason Wednesday at home against No. 14 Olentangy Orange.
“I was a little bit shocked by (our No. 3 seed),” fourth-year coach Jessica Floria said. “We’re very proud of the progress we made as a team. That shows the way other teams view us. We’re solid competitors. There’s a lot to look forward to in the upcoming weeks, so we’re very happy with the way things panned out.”
New Albany went 12-2 in the OCC-Ohio to finish second behind Pickerington North (14-0). The teams could meet in a regional semifinal.
“We’re one of the younger teams in central Ohio, so I’m very proud of the progress that we’ve made and just the consistency of the team,” Floria said. “The boys are completely dedicated.”
Senior outside hitter Andrew Rakocy leads the Eagles in kills (311), sophomore setter Austin Noreikis leads in assists (391), junior libero Adam Sutton leads in digs (237) and aces (32) and senior right-side hitter/opposite hitter Peyton Smith leads in blocks (39).
5. St. Charles earns top seed in Division II, Region 5
Seeking its third state title, St. Charles (20-2, 6-0 CCL) enters the postseason as one of the favorites in Division II.
The Cardinals, who captured their seventh consecutive league championship, host No. 9 Independence in the second round Thursday. The program won state titles in 2018 and 2009.
“I knew we were going to have a good squad,” coach Ned Gruber said. “We returned a lot of guys from last year. We only lost one starter to graduation (in middle hitter Noah Franz), so we brought back our core. We tried to challenge ourselves during the regular season and we had a lot of success.”
Senior opposite hitter Mladen Tague leads the team in kills (244), senior setter Thomas Clark leads in assists (633), junior libero Michael LaSusa leads in digs (140), senior outside hitter Jack Koesters leads in aces (85) and senior middle hitter Connor Cole leads in blocks (70).
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: OHSAA boys volleyball: 5 central Ohio postseason storylines
