Volleyball sectional preview

Center Grove’s volleyball season has been a lot like going through the old Oregon Trail computer game. If you can survive the cholera and dysentery and broken bones that pop up in the middle of the trip, that last leg of the journey feels like a breeze.

No Trojans contracted typhoid this season, thankfully, but it seems as if they’ve dealt with almost every other ailment out there. With everyone finally in good health, they’re ready for anything that might come their way in the state tournament, which begins this evening with a sectional semifinal match against Greenwood at Franklin.

Senior outside hitter Calista Stafford, the team leader in kills last season, missed the first month of the regular season after two offseason knee surgeries. Senior setter Madison Hammill had an emergency appendectomy on Aug. 27 and missed about four weeks herself — and her backup, junior Jenna Otto, injured her ankle just days later, forcing the Trojans to use libero Ashley Eck as their setter for a few weeks.

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Having those holes in the lineup, though, allowed Center Grove to give bigger roles to other players, and coach Chris Due believes that has paid major dividends.

“It’s just been nice to try some different things,” he said. “Just to have the depth in the lineup and know that, moving forward, if someone struggles, we’re going to be throwing someone else in and they are going to step up and get the job done.”

Indeed, Stafford hasn’t had to worry about rushing back to become the focal point of Center Grove’s attack; six other players on the team have more than 100 kills this fall, with sophomore Katie Egenolf and senior Jamie Brown leading the way.

Eck moving to setter forced other players to fill a void defensively, bolstering the Trojans’ back row as well. Rylie McMahen, Averie Baker and Jada Beetz have each pulled up more than 150 digs, and all have been highly effective servers.

“Having everyone back is awesome because we have so many different options now,” Due said. “We can do different things offensively. If someone’s struggling passing, struggling serving, we have a lot of solid players that can come off the bench and really step in and fill in that hole. It’s great to see, and it’s definitely a positive going into the postseason.”

For Hammill, the All-State setter who now has this full complement of weapons to work with, the time she spent on the sidelines not only forced her teammates to improve, but it also strengthened her desire to make her final high school postseason a lengthy and memorable one.

“One thing that I took out of it is just how special this time is, and how it’s going away soon,” she said. “So it’s even more important to make every single point, every single practice, every single second count.

“It also showed me just how strong we are. Even when things don’t necessarily go our way or we’re not always the luckiest, we have strength with each other.”

Perhaps enough to make it to the end of the trail.

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Class 4A Franklin Sectional

Tuesday

Shelbyville vs. Franklin Central, 6 p.m.

Center Grove vs. Greenwood, 7:30 p.m.

Thursday

Franklin vs. Shelbyville-Franklin Central winner, 6 p.m.

Whiteland vs. Center Grove-Greenwood winner, 7:30 p.m.

Saturday

Championship, 7 p.m.

Class 3A Speedway Sectional

Thursday

Indianapolis Washington vs. Speedway, 6 p.m.

Indian Creek vs. Beech Grove, 7:30 p.m.

Saturday

Herron vs. Washington-Speedway winner, 11 a.m.

Cardinal Ritter vs. Indian Creek-Beech Grove winner, 12:30 p.m.

Championship, 7 p.m.

Class A Edinburgh Sectional

Thursday

Waldron vs. Hauser, 6 p.m.

Morristown vs. Greenwood Christian, 7:30 p.m.

Saturday

Southwestern vs. Waldron-Hauser winner, 11 a.m.

Edinburgh vs. Morristown-GCA winner, 12:30 p.m.

Championship, 7 p.m.

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Class 4A Franklin Sectional

Players to watch: Center Grove — Grace Boggess, Jamie Brown, Ashley Eck, Katie Egenolf, Madison Hammill; Franklin — Kabria Chapman, Haley Haldeman, Cami Kelsay, ; Franklin Central — Rebecca Hunley, Emily Jarrell, Carly Sobieralski; Greenwood — Ella Dean, Megan Johns, Joy Maze; Shelbyville — Hannah Johnson, Macey Kuhn, Izzy Lewis; Whiteland — Toni Joyner, Sarah Scott

IndianaPrepVolleyball.com rankings: Center Grove 12th overall (ninth in Class 4A), Franklin 72nd (34th in 4A), Franklin Central 104th (45th in 4A), Greenwood 142nd (54th in 4A), Shelbyville 175th (64th in 4A), Whiteland 292nd (87th in 4A)

What to expect: This sectional has traditionally come down to Center Grove and Franklin, and there’s a good chance of that again being the case. The Grizzly Cubs could face a semifinal challenge from Franklin Central. Regardless, it’s probably the Trojans’ title to lose, especially now that the team is healthy. Franklin could make the final match competitive, but it’ll need one of its best performances of the year to pull the upset.

Class 3A Speedway Sectional

Players to watch: Beech Grove — Rachel Davis, Elysia Hubbard, Arial Keown; Cardinal Ritter — Alexis Priesthoff, Megan Van Gheem, Kelsey Waggoner; Indian Creek — Jessie Hart, Makena Hogue, Korrah Martin; Speedway — Maddie Barnes, Madi Golden, Audrey Zore

IndianaPrepVolleyball.com rankings: Ritter 191st overall (54th in 3A), Beech Grove 267th (78th in 3A), Speedway 272nd (79th in 3A), Herron 290th (83rd in 3A), Indian Creek 320th (87th in 3A), Washington 400th (100th in 3A)

What to expect: The good news for the Braves after a pretty rough regular season? They might be in the most manageable sectional in Class 3A. None of the teams in the bracket have winning records, and 10-16 Beech Grove is the only team with double-digit wins. Indian Creek may still be an underdog, but there’s not a single team you can point to as a clear favorite. If Andi Ferris’ team can find a rhythm at the right time, who knows?

Class A Edinburgh Sectional

Players to watch: Edinburgh — Paige Burton, Emily Chappelow; Greenwood Christian — Maggie Booher, Izzy Reed, Mayah Schundelmier; Hauser — Shelby Fugate, Hannah Johnson, Aunaka Wasil; Morristown — Emma Theobald, Bella Thompson; Southwestern — Emma Engel, Trinity Tatlock; Waldron — Madalyn Hudnall, Maddi Tyree

IndianaPrepVolleyball.com rankings: Hauser 95th (14th in Class A), GCA 203rd (25th in A), Waldron 220th (29th in A), Morristown 224th (30th in A), Southwestern 230th (31st in A), Edinburgh 301st (49th in A)

What to expect: Both the Cougars and Lancers have to feel good about their chances to reach the sectional final — especially host Edinburgh, which has a bye and beat both Morristown and GCA in the regular season. The tricky part, though, will be getting past Hauser, which is undefeated against the rest of the field. The Jets — looking for a 10th straight sectional title — are the clear favorite here, with the Cougars the only team in the bracket that took so much as a set off of them. It’ll take some doing to knock them off.

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