Lady Hubs volleyball team loses steam against Sterling

Rochelle girls fall to Golden Warriors 17-25, 12-25

Russell Hodges
Posted 10/12/17

Rochelle (7-23-2) will host the Geneseo Lady Leafs for Senior Night on Tuesday, Oct. 17 before gearing up for the IHSA Class 3A Regional in Sycamore. With only one regular season match remaining, the Lady Hubs will look to generate some magic to send their seniors out on a high note.

This item is available in full to subscribers.

Please log in to continue

Log in

Lady Hubs volleyball team loses steam against Sterling

Rochelle girls fall to Golden Warriors 17-25, 12-25

Posted

ROCHELLE — Jacie Wyatt hasn’t spent much time in the middle for the Lady Hubs varsity volleyball team this season, but the senior led Rochelle with five kills when the girls hosted Sterling on Thursday for the program’s annual Volley For the Cure Night.

Rochelle fell at Sterling earlier this season, playing a tight first set before losing momentum in the second set. The Lady Hubs showed plenty of fight early in Thursday’s match, but the Golden Warriors proved too difficult to contain, downing Rochelle 25-17, 25-12.

“I thought the girls played more inspired volleyball,” head coach John Pfaff said. “We talked before the match about creating more energy and enthusiasm, and I challenged them and myself too… They came out and played really well. They didn’t make a ton of mistakes, and they made Sterling beat us with tough swings and good blocking.”

Wyatt also added a team-high two blocks while recording one ace and one dig. Junior Emily Engelkes and freshman Clare Green each totaled three digs to lead the Rochelle defense, while sophomore Maggie Duval led the Lady Hubs with four assists. Junior Emma Mehrings chipped in two kills on offense.

“Jacie is extremely athletic,” Pfaff said. “She can jump and hang in the air, so if her timing is off, she can make up for that with her athleticism. I think that’s why we chose to make a pretty big switch. When you take a First-Team All-Conference setter and move her to the middle… She’s picking things up really quickly.”

Rochelle (7-23-2) will host the Geneseo Lady Leafs for Senior Night on Tuesday, Oct. 17 before gearing up for the IHSA Class 3A Regional in Sycamore. With only one regular season match remaining, the Lady Hubs will look to generate some magic to send their seniors out on a high note.

“They took Geneseo to three sets at their place,” Pfaff said. “If their middle hadn’t taken over I think we would’ve walked away with the win. They know they can beat them, and if they use that same energy they used in the first set against Sterling… It’d be nice to get our seniors a win on their last night.”

The No. 9 seeded Lady Hubs will play No. 7 seed Wheaton Academy in the quarterfinals on Monday, Oct. 23 at 5:30 p.m. at Sycamore High School. While Rochelle hasn’t locked down many wins this year, the Lady Hubs are aiming to turn a corner in the postseason, and Pfaff said consistent effort will be the key to a potential turnaround.

“I think we found our Achilles’ heel,” Pfaff said. “If we don’t win the first game… That is going to be our biggest challenge. Can we play with the same intensity in game two or game three that we play with in game one.”