For more on the Quincy High School volleyball team's state tournament appearance,
visit Matt Goldberg's blog — Goldy's Nuggets
By MATT GOLDBERG
Herald-Whig Sports Writer
NORMAL, Ill. — A fly kept on harassing Barb Crist during Saturday's postmatch press conference.
It was pesky, relentless and just wouldn't go away.
It possessed the same characteristics as Crist's Quincy High School girls volleyball team, especially in the final game of Saturday's Class 4A third-place game
The Blue Devils faced deficits as large as six points, but fought until the end in a 23-25, 25-19, 25-22 loss to Glenview Glenbrook South at Redbird Arena.
Crist never caught the fly.
And the Blue Devils could never catch the Titans in the third game, after taking a 1-0 lead on a Titans hitting error.
Glenbrook South built a six point lead twice, at 10-4 and 20-14.
QHS cut the deficit to a one-point deficit twice late in the third game -- at 21-20, 22-21 and 23-22 on Kaitlyn Hankins' 14th kill of the match, the final kill of her career.
But Ellen Chapman's match-best 18th kill put the Titans up 24-22 and an Elise Gregg ace gave the Titans a win. Chapman, a 6-foot-4 junior heading to Wisconsin and Emani Sims, a Miami recruit who had 13 kills, led Glenbrook South (37-5).
"We just couldn't stop (Sims)," QHS senior setter Hannah Kvitle said of Sims, who had a .500 hitting percentage. "Almost every single one of her balls hit the floor somehow. But we did give it our best effort."
Crist was pleased with the way the Blue Devils (37-5) kept clawing back.
"I'm very, very proud of my girls," Crist said. "We came out and played and we did not at one time ever give up. And that's something this team is very well known for. I couldn't be any happier. Yes, we lost. But the fact is they came out and played their game. And that's what I'm most proud of."
Especially in the opening game.
An energized Blue Devils team jumped out to a 3-0 advantage and didn't relinquish it until Glenbrook South took a 19-18 lead.
The Titans led 23-22 before the Blue Devils rattled off the final three points.
The Blue Devils had fire and enthusiasm that wasn't with them during Friday night's 25-17, 25-16 semifinal loss to LaGrange Lyons Township.
"We weren't there mentally, we weren't there physically," Crist said. "(It was) probably the worst game of the whole entire season last night. But the big thing is that we came out tonight with a completely different attitude and they showed what they've been doing all season long. And they showed that we do belong here in the top four."
QHS never led in the second game. The Blue Devils tied the middle game at one and three. The Titans held a 6-3 lead, but the Blue Devils could never get any closer than 10-9.
After that, Glenbrook South led by as many as eight points.
Service errors hurt the Blue Devils, especially in the closely contested final game, when QHS, which experienced its first losing streak of the season, committed three of its seven service errors.
After only hitting .059 in the semifinals, QHS had a hitting percentage of .211 -- led by Hankins hitting at a .367 clip.
— mgoldberg@whig.com/221-3367
