STRONGSVILLE — On the brink of elimination, the Buckettes just wouldn’t quit.
Down two sets to none and trailing 24-23 in the third set, Buckeye Central rallied to win 26-24, then take set four 25-13 and the fifth set 15-10 in a Division IV Region 13 regional semifinal at Strongsville High School Thursday against Columbia Station Columbia (23-2).
Columbia won the first two sets 25-23, 26-24.
“Something switched. I think the girls finally realized they didn’t want their season to be over,” Buckettes head coach Missy McDougal said. “They weren’t ready to be done. I can’t even describe how happy I am for them and the amount of grit they showed to come back from a 2-0 deficit.”
The victory advances Buckeye Central (19-7) to the regional finals against Canton Central Catholic (21-5) at 6 p.m. Saturday for the regional championship and a berth in the state tournament.
The Crusaders beat top-seed McDonald 19-25, 25-14, 25-15, 25-14 in the nightcap.
“We talked about this and that happened to us in that Mohawk game. We won the first two sets and saw what they did. Like hey, it’s possible. We gotta do the little things right and we did,” McDougal said.
The first set was a see-saw affair tied at 10 before the Raiders got three straight points, coupled with a pair of BC miscues, for a 25-23 win.
Kimmy Biglin had a big game for the Buckettes. She and her two senior teammates — Ella Steele and Mia McDougal — weren’t ready to be done.
It started out a bit rocky for BC and Biglin, who committed a serving error and a receiving error before turning things around.
“That’s something I’ve struggled with my entire career in volleyball. It’s something I always try and focus on. Going into a regional semifinal game you gotta let that stuff go,” Biglin said. “You can’t have those mental mistakes.”
Biglin agreed with her coach, that cleaning up little things turned out to be the difference.
“It wasn’t them. It was us. Our errors. We fixed those little things, and we came back. We wanted more than just to make it to the regional semifinals,” she said.
Columbia coach Kelsey Geanuracos took her team to its first regional appearance in school history and had won 14 straight matches.
“I am going to miss these seven seniors. They’ve obviously given everything to this program,” she said. “It was close for us (10-minute drive), and it felt like a home game. What a privilege to coach these girls.”
Senior left outside hitter Cameron Baker had an outstanding game for the Raiders, recording double digits in kills and serving aces. Baker recorded four kills to close out the second set. Her serving and hitting kept the Raiders coming back from deficits in the final sets.
“Cam Baker has earned every accolade this season. She has put in the work in season, out of season, in the weight room, on the club floor,” Geanuracos said. “Meg (Simon) also was phenomenal tonight. She had almost 700 assists this season, which says a lot about her as a setter and our hitters.”
Biglin, along with Mia and Mara McDougal also had multiple points, keeping Buckeye Central alive in the third set. An 8-1 Columbia run led by Baker’s points took it from a 20-13 game to a 21-all tie.
But the Buckettes hung tough thanks to a Mara McDougal block and kills by her and Mia resulted in a 26-24 win.
Mia McDougal finished with 20 kills and 10 blocks. Baker had 19 kills for Columbia.
“Going into that fifth set I don’t think Columbia had been in a five-set match all year. I told the girls you have the experience. You just went through this playing St. Paul, and you won. You know how to finish games. We need to get a quick start,” McDougal said.
The Buckettes went up 10-5 and 15-6 and cruised to the fourth set win, 25-13. They also took a 5-1 lead in the fifth set and ran it to 12-6.
“The last three sets there were a lot of unforced errors,” Geanuracos said. “Not to take away from what Buckeye Central was doing and making great plays with (Mia McDougal).
“Something that we did was staying cool, calm and collected. We got in our heads a little bit. We worked ourselves out of that, but it didn’t go our way.”
Callie Demagall and Delaney Friscone also had solid showings for the Raiders.
Biglin, who had 8 kills, said her team will be ready for Saturday’s regional final against Canton Central Catholic.
“Every game we all put it all on the line and play our hearts out. That’s all we can do.”
Geanuracos summed it up, saying: “Volleyball is a game of momentum, and tonight the momentum shifted.”
CALVERT ADVANCES, MOHAWK FALLS: Tiffin Calvert and Convoy Crestview also advanced in the other bracket to reach the regional finals.
Calvert downed Ayersville 25-18, 25-22, 25-12. Previously unbeaten Mohawk fell to Crestview 25-18, 25-19, 25-21.