Girls Volleyball: Hartley falls to balanced Gilmour Academy in DII state semi
Thursday, November 9, 2023
By Michael Rich
mrich@cbussports.com
Bishop Hartley’s Kaylee Musick makes contact against Gilmour Academy in the Lancers’ Division II state semifinal win Nov. 9 at Wright State. Photo: John Hulkenberg
Winning at the state level is difficult enough. But beating a team that has everything for it is darn near impossible.
The Hartley girls volleyball team ran into such a problem in a Division II state semifinal on Nov. 7 at Wright State’s Nutter Center. Gates Mills Gilmour Academy was firing on all cylinders in a 25-14, 25-15, 25-14 victory.
The Lancers seek their fourth state championship against Cincinnati Mercy McAuley on Nov. 11 back at Wright State.
Four players had five or more kills – Aubrey Anders (10), Maria Flynn (nine), Marlie Davis (seven) and D’Aira Whitner (five) – for Gilmour. Kayla Channell added four kills and setter Ella Jackson three.
“Gilmour is a great team,” Hartley coach Michael Rahe said. “They’re big, they’re lanky, they put up a great block and they serve really well. It’s hard to game-plan for a team that has that many weapons. The girls worked really hard to execute what we were trying to do. Somedays, it’s just not your day.”
The balance has been a strength for Gilmour all season, coach Danny Coughlin said.
“If you look at our stats, we’re pretty well-rounded with five attackers that are all in triple digits (in kills),” he said. “Everyone seemed to be clicking tonight. The ball control on first contact – it stayed clean for three sets.
Bishop Hartley’s Michaela Muray goes for the block against Gilmour Academy in a Division II state semifinal Nov. 9. Photo: John Hulkenberg
“Ella does a great job of moving the ball around. She can spread the court and reverse the ball really, really well from just about anywhere. Then, the hitters did a great job of making quality shot selections today. Our out-of-system swinging was really on fire today.”
It’s a dream scenario for Jackson, who had 23 assists and 12 digs – both team-bests.
“As a setter, I’ve been blessed with talent (around me),” the junior said. “I don’t have to worry about a bad matchup because I can just set another girl and do just as well. It’s really no problem, which helps a lot.”
The Lancers (18-10) had 16 assisted blocks and one solo block, led by Channell, who had one solo and three assisted and Whitner and Flynn with four assisted apiece.
Davis and Kelsie Thompson served up three aces each out of eight total for Gilmour and Brie Habeeb added 11 assists and nine digs.
Karah O’Malley had 12 digs and two aces, Kaylee Musick had seven kills and six assists and Mallory Matheny had nine assists to lead the Hawks (22-7), who played in the state tournament for the ninth time. Most recently, they lost to St. Bernard Roger Bacon in five sets in a state semifinal in 2021.
Bishop Hartley’s Molly Hannah (21), Emery Minnich (12) and Mallory Matheny (3) struggle with their emotions following a loss to Gilmour Academy in a Division II state semifinal Nov. 9 at Wright State. Photo: John Hulkenberg
“Hearing about the loss to Roger Bacon and the grit from that just pushed us all to work harder these past two seasons,” said Matheny, a sophomore setter. “We finally got here when no one believed we could except for us. Having the grit and want to be here is amazing.”
The Lancers defeated the Hawks in four sets in a regional final in 2022 and in five sets in a regional semifinal in 2020.
Last year, Hartley featured 2023 graduate and current Ohio State middle hitter Eloise Brandewie. So, this was different.
“Last year, they definitely had a really powerful middle, Eloise Brandewie and she was a really good player. That’s what we were practicing was going against her” said Flynn, a senior opposite-side hitter. “But going into this game, we were just focused on ourselves. (Hartley) is a pretty well-rounded team too. So, we were focusing on how we can be more well-rounded and more effective than they can.”
Hartley graduates eight seniors off the team, including Musick, Molly Hannah, Michaela Murray and Jada Shade.
Matheny and O’Malley lead a strong returning sophomore class.
“It’s one of those things where we don’t say, ‘Rebuild’, we say, ‘Reload.’ The sophomore class is really and Kendall Kirkbride is a fantastic junior that plays the right side. We’re always excited for the next year to start. We’re just happy we got an extra three weeks out of this season.”