By Troy Hayes
MaxPreps.com
A long delay to begin its match couldn't slow down Freeburg from grabbing its third state volleyball championship recently.
The Midgets, playing in the Class 2A finals, had to wait as the Class 1A championship and third-place matches went three games, then as the 2A third-place match, won by Elgin St. Edward over Princeton, was two long games.
In all, the Midgets went on stage nearly two hours after their original starting time, but it didn't seem to affect them in their breezy 25-16, 25-16 wins over Tolono Unity.
"Yesterday we had to wait long too, so we kind of got used to it," Freeburg star Sam Kassing, whose team needed only 39 minutes to win, told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. "By the time we got out there ... definitely the wait was very hard."
Kassing and Colleen Yarber had seven kills each, and Krystin Wahlig handed out 17 assists in the win.
The Midgets ended the season at 36-5 and finished with a 20-match winning streak. Tolono wound up 27-13.
It was actually the Rockets who seemed the most flustered by the long wait, committing 19 unforced errors in the title match.
Class 1A
Lanark Eastland knocked off Ashland A-C Central in three tight games (25-22, 21-25, 25-23) to take the 1A title. It's Cougars coach Kristy Pierce's first state title in 23 years of coaching at the school despite more than 700 wins. Eastland finishes the season at 39-3. A-C Central ends at 34-8.
Toledo Cumberland took the third-place trophy, rallying past Sciota West Prairie in three games, 21-25, 25-21, 25-23.
Class 3A
Mater Dei (36-6) won the third-place trophy with a 25-17, 25-22 victory over Chicago Payton (37-3). It was the Knights' 12th trophy in school history, but first since winning it all in Class A in 2001.
Joliet Catholic took the first-place trophy with a 25-19, 25-14 win over Bulington Central.
More Volleyball: Sad to see you go
Kathy Wuller, who led Althoff High's volleyball program to five Final Four appearances at the state tournament in the past nine years, announced her resignation, the Post-Dispatch reports.
Wuller compiled a 394-99 record in 13 seasons with the Crusaders, who made a six trips to the state tournament under Wuller. Althoff finished second in 1999, third in 2001, fourth in 2003 (all in Class AA), third in 2004 (in Class A) and fourth in 2007 (Class 3A). Althoff lost in the quarterfinals of the 2006 Class AA tournament.
This year, the Crusaders – who began the season ranked No. 46 nationally by www.prepvolleyball.com – finished 33-4 with a loss to Mater Dei in the semifinals of the Class 3A Salem Sectional.
Wuller said the loss had nothing to do with her decision to resign. She said the year-long grind of coaching one of the state's premier teams had her mulling this decision for some time.
"I'm tired," Wuller said. "You do this job correctly and it's a full-time job. That's what it's been for me. When it gets to a point where you feel like you're not real excited to go to practice anymore – which is where I got to be – it's time to go."
Football: Down to the nitty-gritty
Casey-Westfield travels to face Auburn in the Class 2A semifinals at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday. Weather permitting, the game will be a high-scoring one. Both teams like to throw the football and both are good at it.
This game likely comes down to the two quarterbacks, and with a nice November day forecasted, it could be a doozy.
Elmhurst Immaculate Conception (8-4) takes on Clifton Central (10-2) at 5 p.m. in the other semifinal. EIC's 5-4 record entering the playoffs is an anomaly. The Knights are the smallest school in the Suburban Catholic Conference, facing the likes of Addison Driscoll, which has won seven state titles in a row, and Lombard Montini, which vies for championships every year as well.
Concord Triopia, the beneficiary of a late fumble in last week's game against Tuscola, hosots undefeated Salt Fork at 1:30 p.m. and Toulon Stark County travels to Milledgeville for a 1 p.m. tilt in the Class 1A semifinals.
In the Class 3A semis, Columbia hosts Du Quoin at 1 p.m. and Oregon travels to Carthage Illini West for a 2 p.m. start.
Troy Hayes covers central and southern Illinois for MaxPreps. He can be reached at sportsgopher@yahoo.com.
