Pine Bush needs five games to beat North Rockland in state volleyball regional semifinal
WALLKILL – Kendall Morris said it was one of the most stressful volleyball matches she has ever played in for Section 9 champion Pine Bush.
“Everyone came into this (match) thinking we’re going to win,’’ the junior said of Wednesday night’s state Class AAA regional semifinal with Section 1 champion North Rockland. The Bushmen squeaked out the first game, dropped the next two and faced four match points in the fourth game.
But the resilient spirit of Pine Bush was strong as the Bushmen rallied to even the match and had an easier time closing it out, 25-23, 19-25, 23-25, 27-25, 15-10, moving within one win of the state Final Four next weekend in Glens Falls.
“We kept fighting,’’ Morris said. “I think for me it was the thought of the (season) being done and not being able to play with these (seniors) ever again. It kind of brought us back and made us fight a little more.’’
Pine Bush co-captain Monica Ilioiu said it was very strange to see her team on the brink of elimination – she is one of the seniors coach Melyssa Amelio calls “The Great Eight.’’
“We had our expectation set out,’’ she said. “Although it didn’t come out as we thought it would, we all fought for everything that we did. It was amazing to see everybody come together.’’
Down 24-22 in the fourth, Ilioiu came to the rescue with two aces down the middle. The two clubs traded points on the next two serves. With Ellie Hoppe on the line, the Raiders couldn’t dig out her serve and standout hitter Desirae Rodriguez nipped the antenna to give Pine Bush the equalizer.
North Rockland’s hitting went a little errant to start the fifth game as Pine Bush to leads of 6-3 and 8-4. The Raiders didn’t win a point on their own serve until they were down 11-7. The match ended when Taylor Jennings set up a hit by Ilioiu on the left side, the ball going off the block attempt by Ziacera Sexton and landing out of bounds.
“It's so incredible,’’ Ilioiu said of the last play. “I can't even fathom all the joy that just spreads out because you see all these girls cheering.’’
By the numbers
Pine Bush won 109 points to North Rockland’s 108. The match took nearly 2 ½ hours to play. … North Rockland (19-3) has won three of the last six Section 1 championships. For the Bushmen, Anabella Almeida had 36 assists, eight digs and three kills; Ellie Hoppe had 14 kills and three blocks; Ilioiu had 11 digs and nine kills; and, Morris had eight kills and seven digs.
They said it
“I called them the Cardiac Kids all year long for a reason because they make every match, every set interesting. They had a great season. They hustled. They left it out on the court. I’m really proud of them. They fought to the end.’’ – Peter Eckert, North Rockland head coach
“It is hard to come back after losing two (games) in a row, but they have fight, they've always had fight. They've been playing for me since they were 8 or 9 years old in a volley kids program. … They don't want to end yet.’’ – Melyssa Amelio, Pine Bush coach
Class AA: Cornwall shakes off early nerves, dispatches Greeley in state volleyball regional semi
Class A: Volleyball: Byram Hills beats Wallkill, advancing to regional final
Class B: Volleyball: Putnam Valley tops Red Hook, advancing to regional final
Class C: Millbrook volleyball keeps momentum in sweep of Tuckahoe in regional semis
Up next
Pine Bush will take on Section 4 champion Elmira in Saturday’s regional final. The match will be played at Candor High School at 2 p.m.
X / Twitter: @KenMcMillanTHR
This article originally appeared on Times Herald-Record: Pine Bush beats North Rockland in state volleyball regional semifinal
