Elder wins Division I state volleyball championship

When Elder senior Ben Smith went back to serve match point Sunday evening against GCL South rival St. Xavier in the state championship game, he was in familiar territory. Last year he served match point against Hilliard Davidson and sent the ball out of bounds, only to watch the Wildcats celebrate their state title.

Sunday his serve went in, the Panthers won the point, and the Elder fans in attendance rushed the court to celebrate with the team for its Division I state title.

Smith's serve capped an impressive three-game victory over No. 1 rated St. Xavier, 25-23, 25-20, 25-22. The Panthers took down Hilliard Davidson in three games as well, 25-23, 25-14, 26-24, earlier in the day in the semifinals. The Bombers reached the finals by knocking off Hilliard Darby, 25-18, 25-16, 25-22.

"I just went back there thinking I have to get this in," said Smith, who also had five kills and two blocks in the win. "It was a flashback to last year, but I knew it was my time this year. It's surreal. I still can't get over it. I just want to cry right now. After four years of hard work, it finally paid off."

After advancing to the state semifinals with a win over Lakota East on Saturday, Elder coach Sean Tierney said the biggest key for his team going forward was to find the right emotional balance and not get too excited on the big stage. Sunday the Panthers may have struggled to find that balance early against St. Xavier, but once they settled in, their execution was nearly flawless.

The Bombers jumped on top 11-4 early in the first game by playing aggressive and with plenty of intensity. Bobby Ryan, Nick Talbot and Michael Hartmann all finished big kills at the net to help give St. Xavier the early momentum. The Bombers held the lead most of the game, until Elder made a late 4-0 run to tie it up, 23-23. After a timeout by St. Xavier coach Bill Ferris, senior Jonathan Boiman served up the final two points of the set to give the Panthers their first lead and the game.

"We just needed to calm the nerves," Tierney said. "Our junior Ben Luebbe was a little wide-eyed, I think. Once he was able to slow down and get in the game, it was huge for us."

Boiman helped them pull away again in the second game when he served up four straight points to break a 14-14 tie, before they finished out the 25-20 win. Luebbe, who finished the match with 10 kills and three block, combined with senior Brad Newell to provide a big spark with their impressive play at the net. Newell added seven kills and one dig.

"Brad is a crowd favorite," Tierney said. "He swings a very heavy ball, but he's someone who needs to be put in the position to succeed. Thankfully our guys put him in a great spot to succeed when the lights were on, and he came on bright tonight."

All three games were competitive, as Elder squeaked out the third set, 25-22, but St. Xavier just couldn't get over the hump. The Panthers' superior passing and strong serve defense kept the Bombers from ever getting into a rhythm with their offense.

"First match today we did everything we wanted to do. We served well and passed well," Ferris said. "We didn't pass as well in the second game, but they also handled all of our serves without much problem. Their passing was better than our serving. That was the difference. We couldn't have as much variety in our offense as we wanted because we weren't passing as well, and it was the exact opposite for them."

Tierney agreed. "We passed very well," he said. "We had some shaky moments, but as long as we stick within our system, we're very hard to beat. Passing is the first step to that."

Senior Josh Byrne added an ace, seven kills, four blocks and two digs, while classmate Matthew Nortmann added four kills, eight blocks and six digs. Senior setter Nathan Herdeman also pitched in with 30 assists, one kill, three blocks and nine digs.

Both teams looked to be firing on all cylinders coming into the championship game.

After winning the first game in the semifinals, the Bombers went up 15-12 in the second game, forcing Hilliard Darby to call a timeout. An ace immediately out of the timeout by junior Patrick Beer kept the momentum rolling for the Bombers and they closed out the set, 25-16. Senior Bobby Ryan, who came up big in the quarterfinal win over Northmont, had a few nice kills, including the game-winning point.

Ryan became dominant in the third game. With a huge block and a kill in a span of three points, he charged the Bombers' emotionally and helped take them from tied 15-15 to up 21-17. Fellow middle blocker Michael Hartmann closed out the 25-22 win with a kill.

"We passed really well in the first game, and when we do that we're able to get everyone involved," Ferris said. "Our middle guys like Bobby Ryan are more effective when our passing is better, and we were able to maximize that in the first match."

St. Xavier attacked the net from all angles. The Bombers didn't have a single hitter with double-digit kills but had four of them with six or more. Ryan led the way with nine kills and three blocks, while senior outside hitter Michael Schwarz had seven kills. Talbot pitched in with six kills, five digs and one block.

Elder fell behind early in its first game against Hilliard Davidson in the semifinals, but an ace by senior Sean Conway tied it up 13-13. The game went back and forth until the end, with Elder pulling out the 25-23 win.

Senior Josh Byrne served up the first seven points of the second game, with Newell providing some power at the net. The Panthers continued to roll to an easy 25-14 win, and then took the third set in another back-and-forth game, 26-24.

Nortmann from Elder and Talbot from St. Xavier were both named First Team All-State in Division I, while Herdeman (Elder), Connor Skelly (St. Xavier) and Beer (St. Xavier) were named honorable mention. Ferris was given the Coach's Achievement award.