’Canes miss out on final

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ROCHELLE – Marian Central’s hopes of a deep postseason run ended Tuesday.

The Hurricanes (27-11) used a late rally to come within two points of Freeport in an IHSA Class 3A Rochelle Sectional semifinal, but the comeback fell just short as the ’Canes lost to Freeport, 25-23,
18-25, 25-22.

“There’s only so much you can ask your girls to do,” Marian Central coach Laura Watling said. “We played well up the middle and had our pass game working well.

“Mary Kate [Manning] was on fire today, but unfortunately, it just wasn’t enough.”

After calling timeout down, 22-17, in the third set, Marian Central rallied and came within two points of the Pretzels, but a double-touch on the last play ended any chance of a comeback.

“We came out a little sluggish in the first game, but had so much energy in the second,” senior middle blocker Manning said. “I thought the third game was ours, but we got down early and couldn’t make up for it.”

“Every girl on this team should be proud of how they played today. Everyone tried their best and played with all their heart. We put our best effort on the court, and that’s all you can ask.”

After a first set filled with inaccuracy and sloppy passing, the Hurricanes used strong net play and error-free volleyball to grab a substantial lead in the second set. Junior Dena Ott recorded three aces and Manning had six kills as Marian won, 25-18.

In the third set, the Hurricanes could not recover from a slow start and made crucial service errors to help Freeport pad its lead.

It didn’t help that the ’Canes were not familiar with their opponent.

“Not having many common opponents with Freeport, we didn’t know exactly what to expect,” Watling said. “But they came out and matched our intensity every play.

“It’s hard to win when the other team doesn’t make any mistakes. I don’t think they made one error in the final game. They got to every ball and just executed.”

Marian Central reached the supersectional round last season and hoped to at least match that this year.

“This is sort of a rebuilding year, but we still had high hopes,” Watling said. “That being said, the girls should be proud of what they accomplished.

“We are young and this experience will only help us years to come. We will be better for it.”