Notre Dame boys volleyball team overcomes slow start to win in three sets

The Notre Dame volleyball team appeared outmatched at the conclusion of the first set Thursday against Metro-East Lutheran of Edwardsville, Illinois.

An obvious size disadvantage loomed large for the Bulldogs, who sustained an 11-point loss in the opening set that created an uphill battle the rest of the way.

Notre Dame coach Mark Moore said the lack of effort was indicative of a bad week of practice for his squad, but the Bulldogs regrouped and never trailed for the remainder of the match, picking up a 14-25, 25-22, 25-22 win at Notre Dame Regional High School.

"To their credit, they responded," Moore said about his team's performance after the first set. "The effort was a million times different from the first game to the second and third games. We played more like ourselves, as far as effort. There were still a few mental mistakes, but the effort was fantastic in Games 2 and 3."

Notre Dame's Sam Dohogne hits the ball past Metro East Lutheran blocker Owen Gusewelle in the third set on Thursday, March 31, 2016, at Notre Dame Regional High School. Notre Dame won 14-25, 25-22, 25-22.Laura Simon

The victory proved to be a crucial early-season test for defending Class 3 state runner-up Notre Dame (3-0), which eased through its first two wins of the season without dropping a set.

Owen Gusewelle provided a kill that sparked a 7-0 run for Metro-East (2-2) and built a 14-4 lead in the opening set. The Knights went ahead by as many as 12 points in the set, which ended on a combined block by AJ Risavy and Braden Woolsey.

Moore said his players overlooked a Metro-East team they handled with ease three times last season -- the Bulldogs won all six sets a year ago -- but were able to return to form as the match progressed.

"Metro-East Lutheran is a lot better this year than they were last year," Moore said. "They're going to surprise a lot of teams if other teams take them for granted, and I think my boys might have been taking them a little bit for granted because we had it so easy against them last year.

"After a stern talking after the first game, the effort came around."

Hunter Tucker had a block that gave the Bulldogs a 6-1 lead in the second set. Notre Dame went ahead by as many as six points before Woolsey delivered an ace that capped a 5-1 run, pulling the Knights within two points at 13-11. Tucker had a kill that ended a 5-0 spurt for the Bulldogs, but Metro-East countered with an 11-5 run that trimmed its deficit to 23-22.

Notre Dame's Hunter Tucker dives in for a return in the third set against Metro East Lutheran on Thursday, March 31, 2016, at Notre Dame Regional High School. Notre Dame won 14-25, 25-22, 25-22.Laura Simon

A missed serve and a spike by Stephen Korte that sailed too long gave Notre Dame the final two points of the set.

Six of Metro-East's seven starters measure at 6 foot 1 or taller -- 6-7 Risavy tops out the group. Moore said his players adjusted their blocking scheme after the first set, which enabled them to generate more offense.

"Their hitting looked really good in the first game, but our blocking was out of position a lot. So we talked about getting in position for the blocks and getting in better spots to try to slow down some of their hitters," Moore said. "Once we did that, I think we got them a little off-balanced and a little tentative.

"... If you're running a good offense, you can slow down the other team's offense. When you're forcing them to make plays and chase balls down, they're not going to be able to get a good swing back. In the first game, we weren't doing that. We weren't taking it to them. They were taking it to us, and I really thought in the second and third games, we really started taking it to them."

Notre Dame took its largest lead, 18-9, in the decisive third set before Risavy and Woolsey combined for a block that capped an 8-3 run and pulled the Knights within four points at 21-17. A lift violation cut Notre Dame's lead to 24-22, which prompted Moore to burn a timeout, but on the next point, the Bulldogs secured the match on a double hit.

With only two returning starters from last season, Moore was excited to see his squad show some resiliency.

"To not dwell on that and to understand that they're better than that, it was really great to see," Moore said. "... I really felt like in that second set, with the way we played, that our guys were going to rise to the challenge in the third game if we could keep the effort going."

Junior Evan Landewee led Notre Dame with 13 kills, while junior Sam Dohogne added five kills. Senior Blake Dunlap finished with 12 assists for the Bulldogs.

Landewee was a setter last season but has been asked to become more of an attacker this year. Moore called Landewee's performance one of the best he's played.

"Evan played fantastic. That was one of the best hitting matches he's had," Moore said. "Of course, he's only really hit for three matches this season because last year all he did was set.

"He's really risen to the challenge of being the hitter and providing offense for this team."

The Bulldogs fell one match short of winning a state championship in their second year as a program last season. Despite the departure of key losses from that team, Moore still believes his squad has potential to be a top-five team in Class 3.

"We just talk about execution on every single point and getting better from every single point," Moore said. "We played a match Tuesday night that we won fairly easily, and I emphasized to the boys that it's not about the scores on the board. I'm worried about execution and fundamentals and making sure we're doing the things we need to do.

"The scores are always going to work out for us if we do the things we need to do. We're trying to get better. We're trying to build. Every point we play -- I don't care if we're up 10 or down 10 -- is an opportunity for us to get better and be better players heading toward the end of the year."

Now in its third season as a program, Notre Dame is beginning to reap the benefits of the system. Noah Pettit and Tucker, a pair of juniors, have been with the program since freshmen, and each year, the numbers continue to grow.

"This year we have eight new freshmen, which is great to help build our program," Moore said. "If we can continue to get eight freshmen every year, the sky will be the limit for us, I think."