The Warsaw volleyball team lost 3-1 Saturday to Michigan City in a regional semifinal at LaPorte High School.
The match betrayed the fact that Warsaw hadn’t been in a regional match in 14 years. The Lady Tigers, usually patient and poised, were nagged by their nerves.
This allowed City, which stayed remarkably patient, to capitalize on Warsaw mistakes and jump out to a 2-0 lead.
Warsaw battled back for a Game 3 win, but didn’t have much left as City advanced to the regional championship.
Here’s the thing, girls: I’ve seen City before. Those exact players, in fact. My last year writing for The News-Dispatch was in 2015, when the likes of City senior starters Hannah Noveroske, Emily Kinney and Kasey Halfacre were freshmen.
So, I knew that City had experience on its side, and I knew just how good those players are.
There’s absolutely no shame in losing to them, especially not when that gutsy Game 3 performance by Kacy Bragg and Katie Swanson is considered.
The Lady Tigers did not play their best. However, no one can accuse them of not playing hard.
Hats off to the Warsaw seniors: not only standouts Bragg, Swanson and Erin Peugh, but also the hard-working role players, Rachel Yeager, Addie Dickerhoff and Courtney Chookie.
As for Warsaw’s underclassmen, Saturday’s loss, and this season in general, should serve as a learning experience for them. They now know what it feels like to win a sectional, and can glean confidence from that.
They also know what it’s like to play on a stage as big as a regional, and how nerves and little mistakes can add up to defeat.
As long as the Lady Tigers don’t rest on their laurels – which, knowing coach Rick Ashmore, he won’t allow them to – we should be in for another stellar volleyball season in 2019.
While I’m lavishing praise, I might as well give a belated shout-out to the Warsaw girls soccer team. They played their hearts out in a 1-0 sectional title match loss to Homestead that went into double overtime a few weeks ago.
The Lady Tigers didn’t allow a single goal for 89 minutes. They, too, have several players returning, though I’d like to recognize the strong play of senior defenders Anna Grill, Olivia Herman and Dayle Harvey.
The Homestead loss had to have been heartbreaking for all of them, but the underclassmen can use it as fuel to take home sectional hardware next season. Just like with the volleyball team, though, it will take diligence and dedication.
To both the spikers and kickers: congrats, ladies. Get after it in the offseason.
