Girls Volleyball: Olentangy Orange breaks through to capture regional crown
Saturday, November 4, 2023
By Scott Hennen
shennen@cbussports.com
Olentangy Orange’s Lily Barron hits at the net during the Pioneers’ 3-0 win over Dublin Scioto for a regional title at Hilliard Darby Nov. 4. Photo: Kevin Rouch
Coach Katie Duy brought her Olentangy Orange girls volleyball program into an uneasy environment upon taking the court at Hilliard Darby.
Eighth-ranked Dublin Scioto was unbeaten and brought a vocal throng of students and supporters looking to take the Pioneers off their game. However, Orange took early jabs from the Irish but was able to secure its first Division I regional championship with a 25-23, 25-17, 25-23 victory.
The seventh-ranked Pioneers improved to 25-3 overall and play unranked Toledo St. Ursula (19-8) at 2 p.m. Nov. 10 in a state semifinal at Wright State. The championship will be at 3 p.m. Nov. 11 against second ranked Cleveland St. Joseph Academy (23-4) or third-ranked Kings Mills Kings (26-1).
“I love being the underdog, and we were the underdog,” said Duy, whose team had lost four previous regional finals. “(The Irish) were the top seed (in the Central District tournament), and a lot of people counted us out and bet on them. We took those receipts and used that as motivation.”
The Irish (25-1) came out strong in their first-ever regional final appearance. They held the lead much of the opening game, leading 20-17 at one point before the Pioneers rallied to win 25-23.
“(The Irish) came in with a really high energy,” said senior outside hitter Lily Barron, a Houston recruit. “We’re not used to coming into a place where they have a huge student section and have so much energy. Their parents were up on every point. I think that we just had to learn how to turn it all out and do what we had to do. After that we stopped listening to the other side and started to pay attention to our game.”
Olentangy Orange head volleyball coach Katie Duy receives her regional championship medal after the Pioneers’ 3-0 victory over Dublin Scioto Nov. 4. Photo: Kevin Rouch
Alec Rothe, a 6-foot-4 middle blocker, paced Scioto. The Florida recruit was able to get her kills, but Orange was able to limit the damage from the other Irish performers.
“(Rothe) is all-American, and one of the best,” Duy said. “All season we have preached team and balance and we have four or five hitters with close to 100 kills. Our setter (sophomore Izzy Scholvin) did a great job of getting the ball to everyone. We don’t have to rely on one person because they are so talented.
“We knew (Rothe) would get her kills, and we just tried to manage everyone else. (The 25-13, 25-15, 21-25, 25-17 regional semifinal win) Thursday (Nov. 2) kind of warmed us up for this because Mariah Massey of Pickerington Central is a phenomenal player herself. We were very much about preaching that she was going to get the kill but watch the other five players on the court. We wanted to manipulate things so she wouldn’t get the ball all of the time. We were in system on passing and defense.”
Scioto coach Jackie Wilson said Orange had a good game plan entering the final.
“They did what any good team would do against Alec, and that is shadow and follow her,”Wilson said. “I think other teams have tried to do that but they executed it well in the second set. I’m super-proud of the way some kids stepped up. Our No. 2, (junior outside hitter) Kira Schaffert, helped get us back in it in the third set and we got a little more creative with our offers. We kept ourselves in the match.
Dublin Scioto’s Alec Rothe, a Florida recruit, gets a high five from assistant coach Zach Wilson during the Irish’s match with Olentangy Orange Nov. 4. Photo: Kevin Rouch
“They put some service pressure on us and our passing failed at the end of the first set. That kind of translated into some free balls and point-scoring opportunities that they capitalized on.”
Wilson said junior setter Maddie Zechman “did a great job of managing our offense” and senior libero Sophia Schwab “will play lacrosse at Detroit Mercy and she had a great year.”
Maddie Cugino, a senior outside hitter slated to play at Gonzaga, led Orange with 15 kills and added 13 digs. Barron added 11 kills and senior middle hitter Skylar Kelso had five kills and three blocks. Scholvin had 29 assists, 12 digs and three blocks, and sophomore defensive specialist Emma Cugino led with 22 digs. Senior defensive specialist Lauren Jacob had 11 digs.
“It meant absolutely everything because Orange volleyball had never been able to get through this match,” Kelso said. “The fact that we were able to push through was great not just for us but for the coaches and alumni.
“The opportunity that we had was insane. We’re a really well-rounded team this year and we really wanted to pull through.”
Duy took over Orange in 2015 with hopes of bringing the program success she had during her stints as an assistant at her alma mater Parma Padua, Gates Mills Gilmour Academy and Hartley. As an assistant, she reached state in 2008 and 2009 at Padua and won state titles. Gilmour Academy reached the final in 2010 and Hartley won the state title in 2011.
“This was nine years in the making,” Duy said. “When you do it that much, you get used to it but then you realize just how hard it is. It is so hard and difficult to get to the final four and achieve that goal.
“When I was hired nine years ago, I laid out and eight to nine year plan to reach the final four
We strengthened our schedule early on and we had a lot of success by running into some good teams along the way that have made us better. But this is an unbelievable feeling. I give all of the credit to the girls and I have the best staff. Every one of them works their butts off. This group is special.”