Huron headed to state after sweeping Northridge in regional final

MILLBURY — Huron was pushed one time in Saturday's Division III regional championship match. The Tigers responded to Johnstown Northridge's challenge like they've seen it before. The Tigers shook off a set point in the third game against the Vikings at Lake High School and scored four of the last five points to clinch a 27-25 victory. That followed a pair of comfortable wins in the first two sets — 25-15 and 25-16 — and clinched the Tigers' first trip to the state semifinals since Huron won it all in 2014. "It's just feels unreal," said Huron senior setter Georgi Moody, clutching the regional championship trophy. "I never thought in a million years we'd be at this point. I'd always dreamed of it but never knew we'd get there." Moody's kill off a Rae Roldan dig ended the match, which lasted a little more than an hour. Makenna Schafer's blast that landed at the feet of one of the line judges broke a 25-25 tie in the third set. The taller Tigers, who improved to 23-2, won most of the battles at the net. They credited their challenging schedule with helping them handle any adversity they faced against Northridge. "They were chucking everything at us and we handled it well," Moody said. "I'm going to give props to (middle hitter) Claire (Solberg) in the front row. She shut them down." A block by Schafer and Sophie Lee denied Johnstown's bid at a Set 3 victory, tying it at 24-24. Lee's kill gave Huron the lead before Northridge standout hitter Sydney Koker, who got hot late in the match, recorded her fifth kill of the set to make it 25-25. Huron coach Don Wood called two late timeouts in the clinching set, not wanting to go to a fourth. "We kept our composure and I was happy to see us make plays at the end," said Wood, who has coached four state championship teams at Huron since taking over the program in 1993. "That's a tight situation and the girls handled it nicely. "(Northridge is) the type of team that could get energized immediately. They could play all day long if they get their energy going. Our kids handled the different type of attack they presented and they get a chance to play another match." Lee led the offense with 11 kills and three blocks. Moody finished with 31 assists and nine kills from her setter position. Schafer and Alizia Lagando each had eight kills and Solberg had five. Izzy Cozzie was credited with 15 digs and libero Sofia Stefano added 14. Huron had big runs in each of the first two sets to take command of the match. In the opener, the Tigers led 13-10 before a 6-0 run widened the gap. Schafer had two kills, Lagando one kill and Solberg a block as the set tipped toward Huron. A Lee block, kills by Cozzie and Schafer and a Lee tip to open court finished the set. In the second set, Johnstown got three straight kills and an ace from Amanda Townley to pull even at 12-12. Huron answered with a 10-2 run that included a couple Schafer kills and ended with a Lee kill and block. Solberg stuffed home a block to finish the set as the senior-dominated Tigers took care of business. "We've got those seniors; they've all been here before," said Wood. "Our height really paid off. We got a lot of touches on blocks. I thought we were consistent." Northridge, which upset top-ranked Ottawa-Glandorf in the regional semifinals, finished with a 24-3 record. Huron's next match will be in the state semifinals. The second-ranked Tigers will take on Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy next Saturday at 7 p.m. at Vandalia Butler High School in suburban Dayton. CHCA, ranked No. 7 in the final coaches poll, swept Versailles in a regional final. The other side of the state bracket features No. 3 Independence and No. 4 Tuscarawas Valley, who will play at 4 p.m. The state championship match is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. next Sunday. "I"m ecstatic we even get to play," Wood said. "Our next accomplishment will being allowed to practice on Monday. It's day by day." GALLERY: [Album Placeholder (use source code to remove)]