GRANITE CITY – The Edwardsville High boys volleyball team defeated Belleville East for the third time this season in a hard-fought 25-17, 27-25 win in the IHSA regional final early Wednesday evening at Granite City’s Memorial Gym.
The Tigers played very well throughout the match,and were able to come from behind in the second game to take the win. And Edwardsville coach Scott Smith had one word to describe the feeling.
“Jubilant would be a good description right now,” Smith said. “The guys played really well.”
The Tigers did manage to pull away in the first game, which was much closer than one might think.
“The only reason the first set wasn’t that close was because we won on a late rush,” Smith said. “The first set was much closer than the score indicated.”
Indeed it was, as the Tigers went on their run, and by the time Josh Whittenburg put away a kill, Edwardsville led 20-14, and later, Brock Hennig served out the game with three points in a row to give the Tigers the 25-18 win and a one-game lead in the match.
East led much of the way in the second game, taking a 17-12 lead as Edwardsville called time out.
“Belleville East held the lead for what seemed like the entire second set,” Smith said. “We were down five points, six at one point, and we called time out, made some adjustments, and the guys overcame the deficit.”
That they did, as Eric Epenesa went on a run, serving up five points in a row to help give the Tigers an 18-17 lead. The Tigers never trailed by more than a point the rest of the way and staved off a game point as the Lancers took a 25-24 lead. Max Sellers got back-to-back kills to give the Tigers the lead back, and then clinched when Epenesa found the inside of the right line with a hit that won the game and the match 27-25.
For the match, Epenesa had six service points, including three aces on the run that gave Edwardsville the lead back, and it was a key point in the match.
“Those three aces were on the same run late in the second set,” Smith said, “and it brought us back in the game.”
Another big addition for the Tigers was the return of Sam Stearns from injury. Stearns played in both sets of Edwardsville’s win over Father McGivney Catholic in the semifinal, and only one set against the Lancers, but Stearns’ return is a huge plus for Edwardsville.
“Sam gives us an extra weapon,” Smith said, “and it also puts Eric into all six rotations.”
The Tigers are now 19-8 and advance to the Belleville East sectional, where they will face rival O’Fallon in a rubber match of sorts. Both Edwardsville and O’Fallon split a pair of matches, with the Panthers winning on their home court, while the Tigers won at Lucco-Jackson Gym in what was their best match of the season. Smith and his team are looking forward to the match, which starts at 5:30 p.m.
“We made everything work against O’Fallon that we needed to,” Smith said about the second match against the Panthers. “It will, I guarantee, be an exciting match.”
