Crusade pays off for Catholic Memorial

By Rob Reischel, Special to the Journal Sentinel

Ashwaubenon — This journey began 12 months ago.

Angered, frustrated and dejected after falling one match shy of the 2008 state title, Catholic Memorial's girls volleyball team promised improvement. That meant longer hours and a greater commitment than many of the Crusaders had ever given before.

Saturday afternoon, Catholic Memorial made sure it was worthwhile.

The Crusaders rolled to a 25-18, 25-14, 25-17 victory over Appleton Xavier in the WIAA Division 2 state championship and claimed their second title in four years. As Catholic Memorial's faithful filled the Resch Center with applause and the Crusaders gathered around their championship trophy, this lengthy voyage had the perfect ending.

"This is almost surreal," said junior outside hitter Kate Acker, who had a match-high 15 kills. "We were determined to win and make sure all that hard work paid off."

In the Crusaders' locker room beforehand, there was talk of last year's disappointments. There also was a rallying cry to win the title for senior Julie Kolinske, another standout who suffered a torn knee ligament before the season began.

"We all talked about how last year was the worst feeling ever," said junior middle blocker Kelli Browning, who had 13 kills and hit at a .524 clip. "So this is incredible. We did it."

Catholic Memorial (39-9) did it all right, and in grand fashion. The Crusaders controlled the match throughout, had a .259 kill percentage, got 37 assists from senior setter Diane McLeod and outstanding play from their dynamic duo of Browning and Acker.

"Clearly, we played very well," said Crusaders coach Ted Schulte, who can be tough to please. "It was a very complete match and a lot of players contributed."

The Crusaders broke open a tight opening game by using a 7-1 run to take a 16-9 lead. Browning was key in that stretch with three kills, and when the Hawks couldn't creep closer than three, Catholic Memorial grabbed control.

"We wanted to jump on them right away," said Browning, who has orally committed to the University of Wisconsin.

Xavier raced to a 10-7 lead in Game 2, only to see the Crusaders answer with a remarkable 14-1 run and take a 22-11 advantage. Included in that spurt were 11 straight Catholic Memorial points, highlighted by five kills from Acker.

"I just think we were more disciplined there," Acker said. "We were getting to all the balls and finishing rallies with kills. It was impressive."

The third game was more of the same. The Crusaders scored five straight points to take a 13-8 lead, before Xavier answered with four straight and closed within one.

Back came Catholic Memorial, though, as a pair of Browning kills sparked a 4-0 run that made it 17-12. Xavier never came closer than four, and Colleen Hanley served up a winner on match point.

"It was a freaky ride," Schulte said. "But luckily enough, we had the talent to beat a lot of teams."

With most of its standouts expected back, Acker was already thinking about 2010.

"Be afraid," she said.

Division 3: Grantsburg (36-1), last year's state runner-up, cruised to a 25-14, 25-21, 25-11 victory over Cuba City. Junior outside hitter Kortney Morrin had 20 kills and senior outside hitter Annie Palmquist added 15 kills as the Pirates hit at a .310 clip.

Division 4: Chippewa Falls McDonell (42-3), making its first state appearance, made it count by rolling to a 25-14, 22-25, 25-15, 25-14 over Wausau Newman in the title match. Senior outside hitter Christi Schoch led with 15 kills, and the Macks had an impressive kill percentage of .295.

Catholic Memorial def. Appleton Xavier, 25-18, 25-14, 25-17. Kills - Kate Acker, CM, 15; Lauren DeShaney, AX, 10. Assists - Diane McLeod, CM, 37; Emily Downey, AX, 28. Digs - Patti Abshire, CM, 12; Lexi Thein, AX, 13. Blocks - Thein, AX, 4. Aces - Colleen Hanley, CM, 3. Records - CM 39-9; AX 35-10.

Grantsburg def. Cuba City, 25-14, 25-21, 25-11. Kills - Kortney Morrin, GRA, 20; Emily Kaiser, CUB, 8. Assists - Larissa Wilhelm and Carly Larson, GRA, 9; Natalie Meckstroth, CUB, 16. Digs - Morrin, GRA, 18; Megan Pickel, CUB, 13. Blocks - Kallie Thoreson, GRA, 4. Aces - Morrin, GRA, 3. Records - GRA 36-1; CUB 35-4.

McDonell Central def. Newman Catholic, 25-14, 22-25, 25-15, 25-14. Kills - Christi Schoch, MCD, 15; Andrea Schuster, NEW, 14. Assists - Karley Wiensch, MCD, 39; Andrea Michalske, NEW, 27. Digs - Ashley Zumbrock, MCD, 18; Schuster, NEW, 18. Blocks - Schuster, NEW, 3. Aces - Zumbrock, MCD, 3; Kaitlyn Ford, NEW 3. Records - MCD 42-3; NEW 24-12.