South Central claims Dieterich Regional title

Dustin White

DIETERICH — For the first time since 2004, South Central High School has secured a regional volleyball championship.

The third-seeded Cougars pulled off their second upset of the postseason Saturday, knocking off the top-ranked host of the Class 1A Dieterich Regional by a 25-27, 25-20, 26-24 final.

South Central (28-4) squandered an 18-12 lead in the opening game; Dieterich (21-8) rallied for six straight points to tie it up and outbattled the Cougars down the stretch.

From that point on, the Cougars continued to bend . . . but didn't break again.

South Central led by as many as seven on several occasions throughout game two, but allowed the Movin' Maroons within a 22-20 margin thanks to consecutive aces from Brandi Orsborn.

A side out on a kill from junior reserve Katie Crain was the beginning of the end of that threat; Kelsey Uphold's ace after a Dieterich net violation brought the set to an end.

Crain continued to come up big for the Cougars in the deciding game, racking up seven kills in that game alone.

Dieterich dug itself another deep hole in game three, trailing 18-10 at one point before making a valiant effort to knot the tally at 19-19 and even open a 21-19 lead.

Uphold drilled a kill home to cut into that edge, and Crain sent one home untouched to tie it back up.

Kendra Schaal got a break when she sent a two-handed free ball into the net only to watch it roll over and untouched to the floor, and Crain made it 23-21 with her final kill of the evening.

A South Central attack into the net followed by a kill from Miranda Goodman got the Maroons back even, and Orsborn sent a good, low serve to paydirt for a go-ahead ace.

Passing errors cost Dieterich on game point, and South Central went ahead for good when Goodman was whistled for a lift as she tried to make a pass near the net.

Unfortunately for Coach Nikki Earnest's club, Dieterich also lost the match on passing miscues as Goodman chased an errant first touch into the net and hit the antennae with her desperate attempt to keep the ball alive.

"I'm proud of the girls," said Earnest. "They played their guts out. South Central is a great defensive team. They cover the court well. Good luck to them in sectionals."

Mary Brimberry, longtime coach at South Central, said she never lost faith in her club.

"I just have confidence in the girls," said Brimberry, who has guided the Cougars to six regional titles since 1994 without anything close to a losing season.

"As long as they're ready to play, I know each one of them is going to step up. There were some shaky times, but at the same time I still had confidence in them."

Crain was just one of three players Brimberry could've sent to play the front row in the final game.

"(Crain) in the third set — awesome," said Brimberry. "That was a call I had to make. She had a good second set, so I went that way. I'm just glad it paid off."

South Central hit the ball with authority at times; sophomore Kinzie Neilson looked strong early and also played well in the back, while sophomore Emily Atwood was a game-changer with her attack and her defensive play at the net.

At times the Cougars were also fairly conservative, however.

"I didn't like our hitting," said Brimberry. "We started tipping and we weren't sure of ourselves. I know we're a much better hitting team than that.

"The girls just wanted to make sure they kept it in play. As long as they were finding holes, I can't fault them."

Another sophomore, Sarah Kramer, had to come in and do some setting as junior Carissa Lotz wasn't feeling 100 percent, and Uphold turned in some key contributions.

In other words, everybody pitched in for the Cougars. The same can certainly be said of Dieterich.

Orsborn led with nine kills, three aces and 25 digs; she also served a team-high 12 points along with Olivia Kuhl, who had 18 digs and seven kills.

Freshman Candace Niemerg was solid at the net with two blocks, a couple stuff blocks and also two kills, while Goodman contributed in every stat category with six kills, four digs, three blocks, two stuff blocks, an ace and an assist.

Most important, perhaps, is that Dieterich's roster carries but one senior — Lara Cox — and showed some serious vitriol to fight back from disheartening deficits in each and every game.

In knocking off St. Elmo and now Dieterich in this postseason, the Cougars have effectively taken revenge for some regular-season losses — as well as a loss to St. Elmo in last year's regional finals despite more than 30 victories and a top seeding.

Now, South Central moves on to Tuesday's semifinals at the Red Hill (Bridgeport) Sectional, where it will take on Cumberland at 7 p.m.

Cumberland, having another strong showing after its third-place finish at last year's state tournament, is a daunting opponent after winning its own regional, but Brimberry knows her club is capable of beating the Pirates.

"We already beat them," said Brimberry. "I'm not going to look for the revenge now. Now it's time for us to take charge."

Dustin White can be reached at 217-347-7151 ext. 123 or dustin.white@effinghamdailynews.com.

Class 1A Dieterich Regional

Dieterich — B. Niemerg, 1 point, 11 digs, 21 assists, 2 blocks, 1 stuff block; Orsborn, 12 points, 3 aces, 25 digs, 9 kills; Goodman, 4 points, 1 ace, 4 digs, 6 kills, 1 assist, 3 blocks, 2 stuff blocks; Zumbahlen, 7 digs, 4 kills, 1 block, 1 stuff block; Kuhl, 12 points, 2 aces, 18 digs, 7 kills, 2 assists, 1 block; Cox, 5 points, 11 digs; Hatfill, 2 points, 14 digs; C. Niemerg, 2 digs, 2 kills, 2 blocks, 2 stuff blocks; Teichmiller, 12 digs

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