MONROE - Al Michaels wasn't on the call Tuesday night because of two reasons: Dodgeville-Monroe wasn't a mind-bending international volleyball match with side stories galore, and even though a previously winless Monroe swept the Dodgers 3-0, they were the favorite entering the contest.
Somewhere in there you read correctly that the Cheesemakers, which went 0-12 in the Badger South this season, stopped Dodgeville in straight sets in the opening round of the WIAA Division 2 playoffs.
"It's about time," Monroe coach Danya Ward said after the 25-18, 26-24, 25-19 victory. "It's something that we definitely knew we could do, but in conference they just kind of threw up their hands thinking the other team was too good. I didn't tell them anything about Dodgeville - I didn't tell them their stats, their wins and losses or anything else I heard at the coaches meeting. I kept it to myself and let them figure it out."
The entirety of the match consisted of two key happenstances: A clean night at the service line and a dominating 15-3 run that closed out Game 2 and gave the Cheesemakers all the momentum they needed for the final set.
"Our serving was definitely 110 percent better tonight," said Ward, whose team was 58 of 63 serving with eight aces. "We changed up our practice with serving, and there was a consequence for every time you missed a serve."
In the opening set, Monroe climbed out to a comfortable 21-11 lead, but then the Cheese started getting a little relaxed before falling back on their heels. Dodgeville rallied to make it 23-18 at one point before Ashley Curtis, Monroe's smallest player, came through with a lofted kill shot to make it game-point. Several times throughout the season, the Cheesemakers blew late leads in key sets, but not on Tuesday.
"It's awesome. It means more now in regionals than in conference matches," junior defensive specialist Kristine Elsen said of closing out games. "Everything you've done in the past you have to leave behind."
In the second game, the Dodgers took whatever momentum they conjured up the set before and burst out to a 17-6 lead. In the middle was a 9-0 run that put Monroe down 11, and that lead grew to 12 at 21-9.
"The attitude and the energy out there were great, and that's what I think the big difference ended up being," Elsen said.
Sam Solberg collected a kill to put the Cheesemakers into double digits in the frame, and Elsen brought her 'A' game at the service line, connecting on five straight serves that included an ace. The short burst made it 21-14, but Dodgeville gave the side out back as quickly as it was won.
"Ashley (Curtis) and Kristine (Elsen) have a sort of lofting-type of serve that just sort of floats to the middle. They got control over it," Ward said.
From there, Heather Barta dominated at the service line, scoring on six straight serves thanks to a pair of aces to bring it to within one at 22-21. Dodgeville connected on back-to-back points thanks to deep kill shots by the Cheesemakers, but Taylor Barrett countered with a pair of spikes to regain the momentum. Monroe finished the frame with five straight points on Elsen's serves.
"It just felt so good to finally win," senior Kirstie Hinojosa said. "We all knew we wanted it, we just had to go out there and prove it on the court. If we lost, there is nothing after this."
The third set was back and forth through Monroe's 9-8 lead. That's when the Cheesemakers started to gain ground, slowly pulling away. The Dodgers did go on a brief 5-0 run to tie it at 17, but a strategically called timeout by Ward turned the momentum back to the Cheesemakers.
"It helped a lot," Hinojosa said of the mental confidence on the court from serves landing in play. "Because then you didn't focus so much on other people's serving and instead on what you had to do yourself. I feel like (our serving) was more relaxed."
Taylor Barrett led Monroe with seven kills and Hinojosa had five. Barrett also had five blocks and Hinojosa had 17 digs. Heather Barta had 17 assists and Elsen's three aces led the match.
Now the challenge facing the Cheese is exponentially greater. Monroe travels to top-seeded Edgerton Thursday night.
"Edgerton is tough; they're scrappy. I think that in general, the regional is getting tougher for us," Ward said.
Somewhere in there you read correctly that the Cheesemakers, which went 0-12 in the Badger South this season, stopped Dodgeville in straight sets in the opening round of the WIAA Division 2 playoffs.
"It's about time," Monroe coach Danya Ward said after the 25-18, 26-24, 25-19 victory. "It's something that we definitely knew we could do, but in conference they just kind of threw up their hands thinking the other team was too good. I didn't tell them anything about Dodgeville - I didn't tell them their stats, their wins and losses or anything else I heard at the coaches meeting. I kept it to myself and let them figure it out."
The entirety of the match consisted of two key happenstances: A clean night at the service line and a dominating 15-3 run that closed out Game 2 and gave the Cheesemakers all the momentum they needed for the final set.
"Our serving was definitely 110 percent better tonight," said Ward, whose team was 58 of 63 serving with eight aces. "We changed up our practice with serving, and there was a consequence for every time you missed a serve."
In the opening set, Monroe climbed out to a comfortable 21-11 lead, but then the Cheese started getting a little relaxed before falling back on their heels. Dodgeville rallied to make it 23-18 at one point before Ashley Curtis, Monroe's smallest player, came through with a lofted kill shot to make it game-point. Several times throughout the season, the Cheesemakers blew late leads in key sets, but not on Tuesday.
"It's awesome. It means more now in regionals than in conference matches," junior defensive specialist Kristine Elsen said of closing out games. "Everything you've done in the past you have to leave behind."
In the second game, the Dodgers took whatever momentum they conjured up the set before and burst out to a 17-6 lead. In the middle was a 9-0 run that put Monroe down 11, and that lead grew to 12 at 21-9.
"The attitude and the energy out there were great, and that's what I think the big difference ended up being," Elsen said.
Sam Solberg collected a kill to put the Cheesemakers into double digits in the frame, and Elsen brought her 'A' game at the service line, connecting on five straight serves that included an ace. The short burst made it 21-14, but Dodgeville gave the side out back as quickly as it was won.
"Ashley (Curtis) and Kristine (Elsen) have a sort of lofting-type of serve that just sort of floats to the middle. They got control over it," Ward said.
From there, Heather Barta dominated at the service line, scoring on six straight serves thanks to a pair of aces to bring it to within one at 22-21. Dodgeville connected on back-to-back points thanks to deep kill shots by the Cheesemakers, but Taylor Barrett countered with a pair of spikes to regain the momentum. Monroe finished the frame with five straight points on Elsen's serves.
"It just felt so good to finally win," senior Kirstie Hinojosa said. "We all knew we wanted it, we just had to go out there and prove it on the court. If we lost, there is nothing after this."
The third set was back and forth through Monroe's 9-8 lead. That's when the Cheesemakers started to gain ground, slowly pulling away. The Dodgers did go on a brief 5-0 run to tie it at 17, but a strategically called timeout by Ward turned the momentum back to the Cheesemakers.
"It helped a lot," Hinojosa said of the mental confidence on the court from serves landing in play. "Because then you didn't focus so much on other people's serving and instead on what you had to do yourself. I feel like (our serving) was more relaxed."
Taylor Barrett led Monroe with seven kills and Hinojosa had five. Barrett also had five blocks and Hinojosa had 17 digs. Heather Barta had 17 assists and Elsen's three aces led the match.
Now the challenge facing the Cheese is exponentially greater. Monroe travels to top-seeded Edgerton Thursday night.
"Edgerton is tough; they're scrappy. I think that in general, the regional is getting tougher for us," Ward said.
