Sullivan Topples No. 1 St. Clair In Districts

Sullivan went into the Class 3 District 3 volleyball tournament with just six wins and needed half of that total to pull off a miraculous title run.

Against all odds, they nearly pulled it off.

After sweeping Cuba in the quarterfinals, the Lady Eagles pulled off a stunning, five-set upset over No. 1 seed St. Clair, 30-32, 18-25, 25-14, 25-22, 16-14.

They returned to the Owensville High School court one night later with a fourth district championship in five seasons in reach, but they ran out of gas, falling in straight sets by identical 25-22 scores.

Never before has a runner-up finish felt so good.

“No one expected us to be in the championship game, and I was super proud of the fact that we rose up to the challenge Monday night and earned the opportunity to compete on Tuesday,” said head coach Sarah Rochleau. 

Her team will return all but seniors Parker Williamson and Saige Carey next season.

“I’m really excited about the future of Sullivan volleyball,” she said.

And for good reason.

The Lady Eagles struggled through a rebuild in 2020 as a group of mostly freshmen and sophomores were thrust into action.

Injuries forced Rochleau to adjust the lineup and bring up freshmen from the junior varsity roster. The lineup was further complicated when news came down two days before the district tournament that setter Maci Nolie was being quarantined.

Rochleau said they were able to figure out their rotation against Cuba.

Sullivan handled the Lady Wildcats 25-17, 25-16, 26-24.

Outside hitters Olivia Witt and Emma Brune powered Sullivan with 15 and 13 kills, respectively. Witt also had 13 points and two aces. 

Cassidy Cunningham had seven kills, Abby Wiegers had five and Carey one.

Carey and Raegan Johnson traded set-up opportunities. Carey had 22 assists and Johnson finished with 13.

Carey had 12 points and three aces.

Johnson and Williamson each had seven points. Williamson logged two aces.

Sullivan served 10 aces.

Morgan Clonts had four points.

St. Clair

Minutes later, the Lady Eagles returned to the court against a powerful St. Clair team that swept the Four Rivers Conference in 2020.

Sullivan lost the first two sets, only to stun the Lady Bulldogs by pulling off the next three.

Rochleau said the first match was a “marathon.” It ended with St. Clair winning 32-30, but Sullivan rallied from 20-15.

“Despite losing that set, I think the girls knew in that moment we could win the match,” she said. “It was going to come down to who could outlast who.”

Rochleau said Sullivan had to neutralized Alohilani Bursey, a ferocious blocker who finished with 24 kills and 19 blocks.

“We knew that Bursey would be hard to contain, so our game plan was to slow her down as much as possible and then really capitalize on opportunities when she rotated to the back row,” Rochleau said.

Despite that, the Lady Eagles struggled to find room to hit around Bursey at the net. 

“She’s an incredible blocker, but my attackers didn’t get frustrated and just focused on making the next play,” she said.

Witt and Brune led the attack for the Lady Eagles, with Witt tallying 24 kills and 10 points. Brune had 17 kills and seven points.

Sullivan had 10 aces to St. Clair’s four. 

Carey had 21 points, four aces and 35 assists. She also added three kills.

“Saige did a great job stepping into our setter role,” Rochleau said.

Rochleau said that Johnson, who was brought up from the junior varsity to replace Nolie, “demonstrated some nerves of steel.”

Just a freshman, Rochleau said Johnson had key serves down the stretch and displayed mental toughness.

Clonts had 10 points and one ace, while Williamson finished with five points and two aces.

Wiegers had five kills.

Overall, Rochleau said it was a team effort.

“We served well, passed well, played great defense and our offense just kept finding a way to score,” she said.

Sullivan was put to the test all season long with a difficult schedule and Rochleau said the experience paid off. 

“We weren’t intimidated playing a bigger team with a better record,” she said. “Hats off to St. Clair on their great season, but we were sure thrilled to be playing in the championship match.”