FOSTORIA (Crawford County Now) — The tournament trail ended for Buckeye Central, due to a combination of illness and a top-notch opponent.
The Buckettes (20-6) lost in four sets to Tinora in the second Division VI regional semifinal here Thursday night.
The Rams, featuring 6-foot-1 senior Tatum Creps on the frontline, gave the smaller BC squad difficulty, winning 25-19, 25-11, 21-25, 25-13 to advance in the OHSAA volleyball tournament.
Creps had an unofficial 18 kills as Tinora (24-2) took advantage of Buckeye’s mistakes.
“We had probably one of our worst games of the year,” BC head coach Missy McDougal said. “Except for that third set. But I’m proud of the girls for coming back there. We had a great year. Tonight wasn’t our night … It wasn’t meant to be.”
New Bremen (24-2) bested Fairview (22-4) in five sets in the opener and will face the Rams for the regional title Saturday at 2 p.m.
Tinora, sixth-ranked in Ohio, broke a 7-7 tie in set one after Megan Siefert’s kill and went on from there.
The set was tied at 16-16 after Maren McDougal recorded two aces.
But it wasn’t enough as Tinora’s Christina Meyer and Paige Gamby salted away the win.
“We were sick and were running girls in and out. I give Maren a lot of credit for being here. She probably shouldn’t have played, but she gritted one out,” McDougal said. “That was a great team. They’ve got a couple of great hitters. Coming in, I was worried about their size and experience.”
The Rams’ size and their ability to overcome their own miscues proved the difference. They took set two relatively easily, racing out to a 5-0 lead and later 11-3.
“They went to state last year and wouldn’t get rattled. We had a lot of young girls out there, and maybe our nerves showed a little bit.”
Tinora got several blocks and kills from Creps added four aces to close the second set, 25-11.
Aleyse Siefert played a solid game for the Buckettes, getting five kills to go along with younger sister Megan’s six and Adrienne (AJ) Jury’s five.
“Maren couldn’t hardly talk and she had no energy, so I told Aleyse she needed to be that person to try to pick everybody up.
“She hasn’t gotten a lot of recognition this year. She doesn’t hit much, but she’s part of our team. When Maren passes, she steps in and can set that next ball. We don’t have to do a lot of out-of-system stuff.”
Set three more closely resembled the Buckeye Central team that won a conference title and a district championship.
Both Sieferts got points as well as Emma Keller (4 blocks total) to give BC the lead after breaking a 7-7 tie. Jury and Creps traded kills to make it 14-14. From there the Buckettes got points from Milania Chamberlain and McDougal to forge a 25-21 win.
With McDougal far from full strength, several younger players were pressed into service.
“We practiced all week without Maren so I told Graceyn (Hook) and Ella (Daniel) they’ve got to be ready. Graceyn steps in there, dug a couple up, and she’s never afraid. When we ask are you ready to go in, it’s always — ‘oh yeah, I’m ready.’
“She’s always ready and I really appreciate that she’s never complained all year. Being a junior, she played JV and kept getting better all season, so I’m proud of her for sticking with us and going out there tonight, playing hard, and really contributing to the team.”
The fourth set saw Tinora open a 5-0 lead and built it to an insurmountable 15-5 advantage.
Tinora head coach Bretta Hagerty acknowledged Buckeye Central tested her team.
“That’s a good team with a good coach. They have a lot of girls with different shots, I said we had to always be ready. And we saw that in the third set, that wasn’t us letting up, that was all them — they earned it.”
Basics were the key to success this season, she said.
“When we have the right dialogue in our head and we’re really focused on the fundamentals, that gives us a chance. We don’t have to play perfect — we’re not going to — but it’s how we answer back and our mindset.
“We’re going to get blocked and we’re going to get aced. But it’s how we answer back and it’s our mindset. They’re going to serve at us, what are you going to do with it.”
For Buckeye Central, it’s the end of a memorable season and one that says farewell to four seniors in Jury, Olivia Bishop, Aleyse Siefert and McDougal.
McDougal will depart as the school assists leader with 2,683 heading into the regionals and an all-Ohio status.
“I told the girls they’ve got two district championships, an N10 championship. They’ve been with me all four years.
“AJ from her freshman year to now. We didn’t get her enough touches tonight. She’s been the ultimate team player. Olivia’s continued to get better and Aleyse.”
Coaching the last of her three daughters added a tinge of emotion for the veteran coach.
“This is a hard one to walk away from with this being Maren’s last game. I don’t understand why the last three years Maren’s gotten sick in post-season. She’s not been at practice all week. It’s unfortunate, but God had a plan. I don’t know what that is, but I’ve got to trust in that.
“I feel so blessed to be able to coach all three of my girls (Mia and Mara previously). This year was special,” McDougal said. “This was her year to shine. I’m proud of what she’s accomplished and what she’s been through.”
Playing against a perennial power like Tinora should fuel the returning players’ fire.
“I told them they got a lot of leadership this year and had a lot of experience to help guide them. Now it’s their turn. They will have to step up next year after being at regionals.
“The expectation of being at Buckeye Central is to win the N10 and get out of districts. We’ve got a JV team that only lost one game, and two varsity starters (Mayzie Hanlon and Chamberlain) as freshmen,” McDougal said.
“The future is bright, and they’ll work hard to carry on that legacy.”