The Niles West girls volleyball team went on a seven-point run in the decisive third game against Evanston, stretching a one-point lead into an eight-point advantage.
It seemed, as the Wolves’ lead expanded, that the match would end with Niles West winning the third game comfortably. Instead, Evanston pulled out a 25-23, 14-25, 26-24 victory in Skokie in the Central Suburban South opener for both teams.
The game turned when the Wildkits looked to senior Stasie Litinsky in a moment of dire straits.
Evanston set the ball for Litinsky with Niles West ahead 19-11, and the outside hitter stopped the seven-point run with a kill. An Evanston service error made it 20-12, then Litinsky got the ball again. She came through with another one of her match-high 11 kills on Wednesday, Sept. 16.
Two points later, the Wildkits went back to Litinsky. The set was far from perfect, but she improvised. Litinsky’s quick, two-handed set went off of the Niles West block and fell to its right for another point.
“She can adjust really well to any type of set,” Evanston coach Pam MacPherson said.
Suddenly, the score was 20-15. Litinsky had turned the momentum, but her expression was unchanged. She didn’t smile. Even as her teammates’ cheers got louder and louder after each one of her kills, Litinsky remained serious, straight-faced and locked in.
“I don’t like to gloat about kills,” Litinsky said. “I usually just try to stay focused and make sure we’re winning the game.”
MacPherson added: “She’s a very serious player, and she actually becomes like a quiet storm when things are tight, which is good.”
Litinsky didn’t have any more kills after she cut the Wolves’ lead to 20-15, but she had flipped the match’s momentum. The Wildkits (9-6, 1-0) scored four straight points to pull within 20-19.
Niles West (8-3, 0-1) responded by taking a 24-21 lead, but the Wolves couldn’t score the final point they needed. Ruby Smith, Evanston’s senior middle hitter, recorded three-straight aces on serves that Niles West couldn’t handle.
Smith’s third ace put Evanston ahead 25-24, and a Niles West overhit was match point.
“We choked at the end,” Niles West coach Stacy Metoyer said. “We had two missed serves. We had shanked passes. We had a great set at the end, and we didn’t put the ball away. It wasn’t just one person. It was the team. I think we just didn’t step up and make the plays we needed to make. Hopefully the next time we’re in this position, we’ll learn from this. And hopefully next time we’re in this position, we put the ball away and do the things we need to do.”
The pressure of a tight, three-set match in front of a boisterous crowd got to the Wolves. That pressure wouldn’t have existed without Litinsky, however.
Her kills “just got the whole team pumped up,” Smith said. “I think everyone just rallied from [them].”
Notes
* Evanston won in spite of 12 service errors in the match. Smith finished with two kills, five blocks and three aces. Senior Sheridan Cleave recorded six kills and two aces for the Wildkits.
* Niles West senior outside hitter Dominique Krason had a team-high eight kills. Junior Kaila Johanson finished with five kills and two blocks. Senior libero Rachel Sison and senior defensive specialist Cindy Lee recorded four aces apiece.
Eric Van Dril is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
Twitter: @VanDrilSports
