Rocky River middle hitter Maeve Kessler, shown here earlier this season against Midview, proved too much for Brookside to handle last week in the Division II sectional championship match. (West Life photo by Larry Bennet)

River upends Brookside to win sectional crown
By Dan Gilles
Sports
Published May 12, 2010

Brookside felt pretty good about itself heading into the postseason. The 16-6 Cardinals were seeded third in the Division II Sectional/District Tournament at Keystone and were able to knock off the host Wildcats just prior to the regular season’s conclusion.

However, in their first postseason match – a sectional final clash with unseeded Rocky River – the good feelings came to a close.

Instead of having a third crack at Patriot Athletic Conference rival Buckeye in yesterday’s district semifinals, Brookside was at home.

Buoyed by the play of middle hitters Maeve and Ciara Kessler, the Pirates proved to be too much for the Cardinals in their sectional final clash last Thursday night, coming away with a 25-21, 23-25, 25-21, 25-17 victory.

In the early sectional final, second-seeded Buckeye dispatched Firelands, 25-13, 25-13, 25-12, setting up a Buckeye-Rocky River district semifinal last night. Top-seeded Bay took on unseeded Avon in the other district semi. The Rockets defeated Holy Name 25-23, 26-24, 20-25, 25-15 last Wednesday.

The district championship match is scheduled for 7 p.m. tomorrow at Keystone.

For Rocky River, senior Maeve Kessler had 28 kills and three blocks, while her sister, junior Ciera Kessler, added 18 kills. They were set up by Maggie Krajcer’s 51 assists and 12 digs.

“No. 17 (Maeve) and No. 18 (Ciera) – that’s as simple as it gets,” Brookside coach Ted Whitsel said. “We didn’t have an answer for them. They set them every single time, and we couldn’t defend it. So, we go home and they go on.

“Seventeen and 18 were their solution to beating Brookside. I don’t have an answer to that,” he said.

Time and time again, the hitting of the Kesslers spurred on big runs for the Pirates (16-8) and also prevented the Cardinals (16-7) from going on any big runs of their own.

“We felt pretty confident coming in to tonight,” Rocky River coach Kelly Bennett said. “The Kesslers are our go-to kids, and when we’re passing well, we can get the ball to them as much as we want. They’re big, they’re athletic, they can hit over people and they really just put the ball down for us.”

For Brookside, Kady Whitsel was 58-of-58 setting with 28 assists, 15 digs and 10 service points. Gabby Woods was 66-of-68 setting with 20 assists, Jeanine Musall was 45-of-49 hitting with 21 kills and 3 blocks, while Kayla Chrosniak was 19-of-24 hitting with 9 kills.

Also helping the Pirates’ confidence was a five-set preseason match with Brookside on the eve of the regular season. Rocky River, treating that match like a regular season match, prevailed. However, a lot can change from April to October.

“I knew (Rocky River) was a good team,” Whitsel said. “We scouted them twice against Bay and Fairview, and we scrimmaged them, so I knew about them. We knew what was going to happen out there. Heck I could have called where their set was going.

“The problem, however, is we didn’t execute. When we know their game plan that well, you should be able to stop them. But, we couldn’t,” he said.

In the first three sets, both teams battled through back-and-forth scoring in the early going. But, in the first and third sets, the Pirates were able to shake free for a decent run, which wound up being the difference in the two wins.

Brookside took the early control of a must-win second game and was able to hold off the stubborn Pirates. The Cardinals longest run was 4-0, and, with the score tied at 18, they were able to outscore Rocky River, 7-5, down the stretch.

“They just executed like they can (in the second game),” Whitsel said. “But the first, third and fourth games, we didn’t execute very well. We didn’t do the things we know how to do. It wasn’t really that we battled back, we just played like we can and did a few things that were right.”

The Pirates took control of the third set in the early going and opened up a 20-14 lead. The Cardinals made another late run, but, just as the first game, it wasn’t enough. As a result, Rocky River took control of the match with the 2-1 lead, needing just one more win to advance.

“I thought we played really well in the first, and Brookside really picked up their defense in the second game,” Bennett said. “But, we were confident. We knew we could play with them. But, it was huge to get that third game, though.”

Rocky River built off of that third game win by getting off to a hot start in the fourth and final game. They opened up a 10-7 lead with a 10-3 run, capped by a 9-1 spurt, to grab a 20-10 advantage that was too much for the Cardinals to overcome.

“Rocky River was second in the West Shore Conference for a reason. Unfortunately, we don’t have an answer to those two middles.” Whitsel said.