NORMAL — Riley Hungate started with a huge block. Then a kill. And another kill.
The senior outside hitter was back in her element, prepared to lift up Joliet Catholic early during Friday’s Class 3A state semifinal match.
“I’ve played here before, so it was a little easier for me to adjust to the court,” said Hungate, who played a key role as a sophomore for the Angels’ 2019 state runners-up. “I was still very nervous, though, honestly.
“Coming out at the start, it’s about setting the tone with a nice, big kill or a huge block. Just something that really showcases what we can do.”
Hungate and Joliet Catholic started fast, but Nazareth closed even stronger to top the Angels 25-21, 25-15 at Illinois State’s Redbird Arena.
Joliet Catholic (27-14) will take on Normal West (33-7) at 4 p.m. Saturday in the third-place match.
Hungate, a Culver-Stockton recruit, led the Angels with eight kills. Georgia State recruit Crystal Galaviz chipped in with five kills and 12 digs. Lily Ray had eight assists, while Sam Horn contributed seven assists and six digs. Bella Dixon finished with seven digs and Ava Neushwander added three blocks.
Indiana recruit Katie Hurta led Nazareth (29-7) with 11 kills, nine assists and eight digs.
The Angels lost 25-15, 25-11 on Oct. 12 to Nazareth, but this time around took a 17-14 lead in the first game.
“I thought it was a positive we were able to play them a couple weeks ago,” Ray said. “We were able to watch film from that game, and we’ve been working in practice on things we could use against them.
“I think we did that at times, but in other times, the environment took over and we weren’t able to execute those things.”
Hungate had five kills in Game 1. Three of those kills and a block came during a 5-2 surge that gave the Angels a 10-8 lead and a boost of confidence.
“I think it definitely helps having that experience of being here,” Joliet Catholic coach Kisha Cameron said. “I think the environment wasn’t as overwhelming to (Hungate) at times, but I think it hit all of us at times.”
Hungate said Joliet Catholic was more prepared to deal with Nazareth’s big plays in the rematch.
“It’s just coming out with energy, and if the other team scores first, you respond to that,” she said. “You don’t fall back, but you come back stronger on the next point.”
Hungate’s final kill of Game 1 forced a 20-20 tie, but the Angels made three late errors as the win slipped away to the Roadrunners.
“Throughout the season, we’ve talked about trying to have energy over emotion,” Galaviz said. “In that moment, knowing we were a couple points up, that gave us a lot of emotion on the court.
“I feel like everyone was on a huge high, which works sometimes, but in that moment, we kind of flipped it and it was more emotion than energy.”
The Angels took a 5-4 lead in Game 2 before making four straight errors, starting a 6-0 run for Nazareth. They never recovered.
“The wheels came off the bus at the wrong time,” Cameron said.
Now, Joliet Catholic will turn its attention to finishing strong in the third-place match.
“After the game, we talked about how as much of an emotional game as this was, we need to move on from it and go out fighting,” Dixon said. “For a lot of us seniors, it’s our last game.
“We want to go out on a high note. We want to fix our mistakes, and we know we can.”
Steve Millar is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.
