St. Paul overwhelmed by Calvert in state semis

FAIRBORN — There was no preparing for it. Despite no seniors on the floor, the Tiffin Calvert volleyball team had six players step on the floor to face St. Paul Thursday afternoon at the Nutter Center with championship match experience. The Senecas looked the part of the experienced state contender in their Division VII state semifinal match against the Flyers inside the Wright State University arena. Calvert (28-0) cruised in three sets — 25-9, 25-15 and 25-18 — to return to the state championship match for a second straight season. The No. 2-ranked Senecas face No. 1 Fort Loramie (27-1) at 11 a.m. Friday looking to win a third state title in program history — all since 2018. Calvert jumped out to a 12-2 lead in the first set against a St. Paul team that had just one senior, and no state experience. "They're a great team with experience here," St. Paul head coach Angie Kalizewski said. "They have got it here on the floor, things that we will get … we will be there." The Senecas also got their usual dominant serving in the match, led by Claire Schoenberger. She had five of her team's 11 aces — compared to just one for the Flyers (20-8) to help her team go on lengthy scoring runs. St. Paul never got untracked in the first set, and never got closer than 10 points after it fell behind by double-digits. In the second set, the Lady Flyers played much better early, only to see the Senecas pull away late. St. Paul trailed 10-9, only for a block at the net by Karris Marinis to give Calvert some distance. Ahead 14-11, Bella Borgio started a big run with a huge kill, while Hope Waire did the same a few points later. Shealyn Deeter found a hole in the Calvert defense to make it 16-12. But once Emily Miller had a perfectly-placed cross-court lob to make it 19-13, St. Paul was again on the ropes. Out of the timeout, Kate Coleman served one of her two aces, and Emily Miller came back with a big kill and another point on a tipped ball to make it 23-15. Marinis added a kill to make it 24-15, and the Senecas took a 2-0 lead on an error by the Flyers. "They did a great job of getting us out of system and moving the ball around," Kalizewski said. "We struggled to get momentum and get in our mode, and a lot of that was because of how they played." The Lady Flyers continued to compete longer into the third set, but the Senecas again had the answer late. The Senecas held a slim 14-13 lead when St. Paul sophomore Ella Kalizewski attempted to lob a ball over the entire Calvert defense — but it just landed out of bounds. Calvert seized on that momentum shift, as Gracie Miller took her turn at the service line with an ace, then St. Paul hit a ball out of bounds and Kalizewski was again calling timeout with a 18-13 deficit. The Flyers got within three points (18-15) on a block at the net by Ella Kalizewski and Deeter, but no closer. Waire put down a kill to make it 21-15, and Deeter responded with a kill. Each team then had consecutive service errors to give Calvert a 22-17 lead. After Bryn Dircksen tipped a ball over to make it 23-17, Kegney Stoll did the same for the Lady Flyers to pull within 23-18. But St. Paul hit a ball out of bounds to set up match point, which ended on a big swing and kill from Marinis. "I thought we settled in, but it was just a little too late," coach Kalizewski said. "You can't wait when you're down here. Again, experience, nerves — none of these kids ever stepped on this floor and that's a big difference in the first set. "It was about settling in, figuring it out … I'm proud of them. They worked hard and got better every set, and usually you get down here that can go the other way. We stayed in it and pushed every set to get better." For St. Paul, Stoll had six kills, followed by Deeter and Ella Kalizewski with five each. Kristin Matlack had 16 assists, while Lily Cuturic had 19 digs. Waire had a team-high 10 kills on 19-of-19 hitting for the Senecas. Emily Miller and Borgio each had eight kills, while Dircksen had 34 assists. Schoenberger led the defense with 13 digs and Coleman added 10. "We talked about trying to win the serve-serve receive game, and I think we executed well on that," Calvert head coach Lori Rombach said. "The girls came out and served aggressively, and I think our defense was spectacular tonight. "Our back row was passing the ball really well … I just think we executed really well today."