Just one match is the difference between calling it a year or advancing to Ohio High School Athletic Association state tournament.

Volleyball powers have appeared in each of the division’s five regional finals that see teams from Greater Cincinnati, including Greater Catholic League of Girls teams in the finals of Divisions I, II and III, going to Greater Miami Conference and Eastern Cincinnati Conference appellants.

In the Division I race, Seton and Mason went head to head right after the Seton football team won the regional against Mason as well. St. Ursula and Loveland played in Division II, and Ursuline Academy battled Turpin in Division III. The Division IV showdown featured one of the best pairings with Roger Bacon and McNicholas meeting. Fenwick and Versailles finished the day in Division V.

Seton tops Mason, back in Division I state tournament for first time since 2005

Kelly Crowley won state championships with Seton as an assistant coach in the early 2000s. Now in his sixth season as the Saints’ head coach, he is back in the state tournament for the first time since they won it all in 2005.

“I came back for this school, this community. It means a lot. I love this place. I took a break when my kids were younger, I just didn’t have time. The timing was right when I came back. I think We’ve done some pretty good stuff in six years, and this guy caps it all off,” Crowley said.

Like their GGCL counterparts, St. Ursula and Ursuline, Seton endured a four-set thriller against GMC power Mason. When all was said and done, the Saints came away with a 21-25, 25-20, 25-15, 25-17 victory.

The Comets came out swinging to win the first set behind five kills and two blocks from Katie Helmes and three kills and two blocks from Avery Renners. They used a six-point run to gain control in that set and appeared to have the Saints on the ropes after taking a 17-14 lead in the second set.

“We had a game plan. It worked. The kids were playing great, with a lot of energy,” Mason head coach Eric Schatzle said.

Crowley knew victory would not be easy. After the first set, he simply told his team to stick together.

Behind sophomore Charley Moeddel, juniors Callie Combs, Breely Miller and Nattie Slusher and senior Daisy Cluxton, Seton rallied to win the second set, controlled the third set and pulled off a tough fourth set to win the regional title . Moeddel broke her hand over the summer and saw action with the junior varsity team for a few weeks when she was cleared to play. Crowley said the difference it makes on the field is obvious.

Combs finished with 19 kills, Moeddel and Slusher 12 each.

“I was like, ‘I want this so bad. I want to do this for my team.” We are ready. We just want to get an adrenaline rush that helped me and helped my teammates,” Combs said.

With so many weapons on the front line and the Saints running a two-set system, it was sometimes difficult to decide where the ball was going, but setters Reagan Miller and Kirsten Kemper read the defense and sent the ball to the right side of the court.

“It’s a tough job for setters, like, who wants the ball? Everyone can contribute in their own way in big moments. I think our setters do a really good job of finding who’s ready to go,” the senior linebacker said. defensive, Sakura Codling. .

Mason says goodbye to seven seniors: Helmes, Renners, Michaela Harris, Stasia Kafedzhiva, Katrina Kassner, Valerie Umnov and Hailey Westerman.

In their return to the state Final Four, the Saints will meet Pickerington North at 7:00 PM on Friday, Nov. 8 at Clayton Northmont, with the winner advancing to the state final.

St. Ursula Academy ends state tournament drought with Division II regional title

Like Crowley, USA head coach Gretchen Krumdieck was part of state championship teams as a student at East Walnut Hills. She was part of the Bulldogs’ six consecutive DII titles from 1993 to 1998.

After beating Loveland 25-13, 20-25, 25-23, 25-25-16, she heads to Dayton as a first-time head coach.

“Amazing. I’m so happy for them because they really put in the work all year. So it means a lot,” Krumdieck said.

It looked like the Bulldogs would cruise to the title after a dominant first set, but the Tigers responded by controlling the net and keeping the USA in the mix in the second set.

“Nothing against the USA, but I don’t think the score line showed the team we are. We gave up a lot of points on the road, and that was our nerves. That’s how we were in that set, but I knew if we focused and I confident that we will be able to play USA,” Loveland head coach Jason Fancett said.

The third set was tough mentally, even for the spectators. The Bulldogs and Tigers traded four- and five-point rallies. In the blink of an eye, a four-point lead for either team is gone. USA scored the final three points thanks to a Molly Creech kill and two Tiger errors.

Fancett believed that whoever won the third set would win the match. That proved to be true as the Bulldogs jumped out to a 10-2 lead thanks to strong attacks from Creech, Lola Waleskowski, Gabby Semona, Lauren Dorger and birthday girl Nia Jones.

“Just making shots and knowing that if I put it up, I can let them make mistakes and be confident in what they can do,” Waleskowski said.

St. Ursula was on the brink of the DI state tournament in 2022 and 2023, but lost to eventual state champions Ursuline and the Kings.

“We knew this was the game we had to go through, especially Gretchen. She had a game plan and we knew we had to stick to that plan to finish,” junior free Emma Frietch said.

Loveland says goodbye to six seniors in Katie Beyke, Ava Boehmer, Abby Dorn, Sophia Loomis, Lilly Patterson and Adriene Reynolds. In a season where the Tigers went 22-5 and beat Mercy McAuley, Mount Notre Dame, Kings, Anderson and Turpin, they really raised the bar on the Tiger Trail.

“This was a good year. I’ll be honest, I don’t have anything bad to say about it. Excited, looking forward to getting back to it. We’re going to miss our seniors. A lot of good leadership and I have distilled who contributes, we had some seniors who really stepped up,” Fancett said.

St. Ursula was the last of five teams to advance to next week’s state tournament. With Cincinnati advancing three teams to Dayton last year and five this year, the state of sports in the city has never been stronger.

“It’s great to see all the GGCL teams succeed as well. We play them all the time, we’re friends with some of the girls, so to see them succeed, to see everyone get a chance at that is really good,” Waleskowski said .

Krumdieck added, “Name a better city. I want to see it because I want to play with them. I think our volleyball tradition in the city is second to none. I’m so excited for everyone else. It makes us all look real. good.”

The Bulldogs, who are ranked No. 2 in DII, will face No. 4 Wadsworth on Thursday, Nov. 7 at 8 p.m. at Trent Arena in Kettering Fairmont.

Ursuline Academy defeats Turpin 3-1 in Division III regional final

With a start similar to that of the Division I regional, it was Turpin who got off to a strong start against GGCL foe Ursuline Academy. Turpin took the opening set 25-21 before Ursuline (20-6) won the next three 25-15, 25-21 and 25-18.

After a one-year layoff when the Kings advanced to the state tournament last season, Ursuline is back in the state Final Four for the 16th time overall and can win the No. 9.

The Lions begin the state tournament against Bishop Watterson in the semifinals at 7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 7 at Clayton Northmont.

Ursuline’s deep and diverse offense led the way. Senior Katie Gielas had 18 kills. Senior Lindy Radaszewski had 13 kills, Jillian Forrest 10, Elle Hudepohl 9 and Anna Beerman 8.

“We have a really good core with us,” UA head coach Ali Butcher said. “Some of them have played varsity most of their careers here at Ursuline, so I understand the expectations. They’ve played for a state title in the past.”

Ursuline came back after Turpin won the first set. The Spartans quickly jumped out to a 10-3 lead and held on.

UA jumped out quickly in Set 2, taking an 11-6 lead on its way to a comfortable victory.

The third set went back and forth. The Lions held a slim 22-21 lead, then won the next three points on a kill by Sammie Duncan and two from Maria Garza to win the set, 25-21.

Gielas and Addy Franz came from behind midway through the fourth set.

“We had to get back to our game,” Butcher said. “We’ve been a bit giddy to be in this big moment. So we had to reset them, get back to what they know and what they’re consistent with, and that turned the tide for us.”

Turpin (16-11) was playing for its first regional title. UA will get its first shot next week at a Division III state title in the OHSAA’s expanded seven-division lineup after a long history in Division I.

“It’s different,” Butcher said. “It’s something we all get used to. It’s such a great opportunity for all these schools that have great programs to get that exposure. For us, that doesn’t change the expectations of what we try to accomplish every year.”

Roger Bacon sweeps McNicholas to advance to the Division IV state tournament

It took five sets for Roger Bacon to defeat McNicholas in a regular-season meeting in September, but the Spartans defeated the Rockets in the Division IV regional final.

Roger Bacon (23-4) defeated McNicholas (22-5) 25-12, 25-21, 26-24 to win the Division IV regional title, advancing to the OHSAA state tournament for the first time date from the second end of the state. in 2021.

Roger Bacon will meet Vincent Warren in the state semifinals at 5:30 p.m. Nov. 7 at Vandalia Butler.

Fenwick won the Division V regional title in four sets against Versailles

Five years after they last won a state title, the Fenwick Falcons are back in the OHSAA state tournament.

Fenwick (15-12) defeated Versailles (16-11) 23-25, 25-19, 25-20, 25-22. Fenwick was 10-12 after the regular season, but the busy schedule worked its magic to prepare for the postseason. Fenwick swept its first four postseason opponents before its four-set victory over Versailles.

Fenwick will play Ottawa-Glandorf in the state semifinals at 4 p.m. Nov. 7 at Wright State’s Nutter Center.

This article originally appeared on the Cincinnati Enquirer: Southwest Ohio High School Volleyball Regional Final Recap