NEW WASHINGTON (Crawford County Now) — Maren McDougal and Adrienne (AJ) Jury were youngsters on a veteran Buckeye Central team that went to the Strongsville regional in 2023.

This year the pair are senior leaders on a Buckette team that is 20-5 as it returns, this time facing Defiance Tinora, in Fostoria. First serve is at 8 p.m. Thursday in the second of two regional semifinals.

“To win a district title is a huge accomplishment,” Jury said. “In practice, we talk about this. We made it when we were sophomores.

“We just knew we all wanted it and would do whatever it takes.”

Canton Central Catholic beat Buckeye Central 3-1 in the regional finals, after BC had topped Columbia 3-2 in the semifinals.

Seniors Aleyse Siefert and Olivia Bishop were also on that team, along with then-freshmen Graceyn Hook and Emma Keller.

To get here this time required a strong performance in a four-set win over Van Buren last Thursday night in the district championship.

“We tried to keep them from getting their bigger hitters into it, keeping them out of system. And just not giving up,” Jury said.

BC is ranked 16th in the state poll.

McDougal leads the team in aces with 81, and Siefert has 73. McDougal also has a Northern 10 Athletic Conference high 623 assists.

Jury is tops in kills with 243 to go along with 37 blocks. Keller has 36 blocks.

MENTORS ON THE COURT

Bringing in a group of young players, including freshmen Milania Chamberlain (171 kills) and Mayzie Hanlon (332 digs) and sophomore Harper Kantzer, has allowed Jury and McDougal to go from the role of student to that of teacher.

“Obviously, they hadn’t played five-set matches yet. They’re all great girls and they’re great to play with,” she said.

“They’ve played at Black Swamp (Tiffin-based club) too, so they’re used to a higher level of competition. The seniors are great, but it’s great playing with the younger ones too.”

The tradition at Buckeye Central is not lost on Jury, who had 223 kills coming into the district tournament.

“I didn’t go to Buckeye growing up, but I’ve always seen them as the best of the best,” Jury said. “To be one of those teams, co-N10 champs and now to go to regionals, it means so much to me.”

A FAMILY AFFAIR

The McDougals did grow up in New Washington — and Maren is the last of three sisters — with Mia and Mara graduating before her. All three were on the regional team two years ago.

“We got to experience this two years ago,” Maren said. “Now it’s a super-cool experience to be back. We know that we want to win and what’s ahead of us. We just have to stay focused.”

McDougal, along with her 623 assists prior to this week, tops in the N10 with 77 aces.

“They’re very high-level athletes,” Maren said of her young teammates. “Varsity level is not easy and they know that. We pull them up in practice every day. We don’t pick on them but prepare them for what’s to come.”

A bit like her older sisters did for her.

With Mohawk and Colonel Crawford losing in the district finals, only Buckeye Central remains of the N10 power schools.

“They stay focused, which is what we need. The N10 is one of the more competitive leagues out there. There are girls going D-I and also a lot of hard hitting, very disciplined teams.”

Being the last of the McDougal family to wear the red and white uniform is special to Maren.

“I don’t think there’s any pressure. My sisters and my mom — we’ve all been here before — and they’re like my role models. I hope I can be like that for the underclassmen,” she added.

“It’s sad being the last McDougal here. But we have young players coming up and they’re bringing the heat, so that’s great.”

‘EARN OUR SPOTS’

One of those is Chamberlain, who had 149 kills entering tournament play.

“The older ones are always positive and pick us up,” Chamberlain said.

“Me and Mayzie worked really hard over the summer and the past couple of years to earn our spots on the team. Everyone was welcoming and it felt natural to be with them.”

Both players display poise, despite their inexperience.

“In the beginning of the season I’d kind of like get in my head after every little thing. They really helped me, and my coaches, to learn that mistakes happen in the game,” Chamberlain said.

“I’m happy to be going to regionals as a freshman, and for all the seniors. I’m excited — a little bit of pressure — but I want to go and have the opportunity.”

ON TO REGIONALS

For head coach Missy McDougal, this is not a new road traveled. She took over the program in 2021.

Prior to that, known then as Missy Heydinger, she was part of the 1988 and 1991 teams that went to state.

“I don’t care who we play. Everybody when you get to this level, are amazing teams. You play MAC schools or other good teams in the Northwest (district),” she said.

“They’re usually all tough and big. I didn’t want to look past this (district final) game. We have got to focus on us and be disciplined in what we do.”

McDougal and her team will have a week to rest and prepare.

“It is nice to have. We’ll try to get our hands on some film. We will go out and give it our best shot,” she said.

“We told the girls, ‘Why not us?’ Why not?”

Despite not having a 6-footer (junior middle hitter Emma Keller is 5-11), the Buckettes have several players capable of attacking the net.

In the semifinal win over Mansfield Christian, for example, Megan Siefert had 9 kills, while Keller, Jury and Chamberlain had 6 apiece.

Aleyse Siefert and Hanlon had 16 digs each, displaying Buckeye’s tough defense.

THE NEXT GAME

Their opponent is Tinora, which topped Parkway in 5 sets in their district final. The Rams are 23-2 and won the Green Meadows Conference with a 7-0 record.

The team is 50-3 over the past two seasons. Tinora made it to the state final four last season, and they beat perennial state power New Bremen to get there.

They have won nine straight matches heading into the regionals and are ranked sixth in the state in D-VI.

The first regional semifinal at 6 p.m. features New Bremen (23-2) and Tinora conference rival Fairview (22-3). Winners return at 2 p.m. Saturday for a regional crown and a trip to the state Final Four.

“We knew we were going to be in a dog fight,” Bretta Hagerty, who has now led the Rams to five district titles in 11 years as Tinora’s head coach, told the (Defiance) Crescent-News.

“Parkway was going to fight all the way to the last point, no matter what the score was.”

Much like the Buckettes, the Rams feel they have something to prove.

“We really fought together, and it was like we weren’t going to be denied. We felt like we had a message to send to a lot of people,” Hagerty said.

“We played with a chip on our shoulder. There was a lot of honor we took the court with, and I was really proud of our resiliency.”

That sounds similar to their regional opponent in Buckeye Central.

For full bracket OHSAA volleyball pairings go to https://officials.myohsaa.org/Admin/Bracket/PublicBracket?TournamentId=4794#