High school volleyball: Highland stuns Olmsted Falls to advance to regionals

PARMA HTS. — A magical, most improbable season for the Highland volleyball team reached a new high Thursday night. All-Ohio outside hitter Alayna Tessena amassed 24 kills, six blocks, five aces and 19 digs as the No. 8 seed Hornets stunned No. 2 Olmsted Falls 21-25, 25-19, 25-22, 27-25 to win the Parma Heights Valley Forge Division I District championship. Middle hitter Kallan Hrics had 10 kills and eight blocks, setter Alaina Scavuzzo dished out 24 assists and libero Corinne Mutch made 19 digs for Highland (22-3), the first Medina County squad to advance to the regional tournament in five years. "You really could tell that we were having fun the entire match, but this is crazy that we're standing here celebrating as district champs," Northern Colorado recruit Tessena said. "Olmsted Falls has such a great team with great players. It took every one of us to win this match. I love these girls with all my heart and I can't wait to go to regionals." The four-time reigning Suburban League American Conference champion Hornets will challenge Midview District winner Amherst Steele in the Norwalk Regional semifinals Nov. 3 at 6 p.m. The No. 4 Comets stormed back to beat No. 3 Cleveland St. Joseph Academy 13-25, 23-25, 25-23, 25-17, 15-12 to keep their season alive. Highland will be making its first regional appearance since 1990 — and the first in school history since the retirement of county all-time wins leader Jill Bouton. "I knew we could do it, but we really, really clicked on the court tonight," Scavuzzo said. "When (Tessena) would look at me, I could tell she was going to rip it (for a kill) every time. She's my go-to girl and I have so much confidence in her when we're together." Tessena tied the Hornets postseason record for kills in a match with 10 in the fourth set, sandwiched around a block/kill by tournament standout Hrics. Highland had built a 22-14 lead, only to have All-Ohio senior Kylee Urban rally the Bulldogs (23-2). Urban, who finished with 20 kills and 19 assists, blistered back-to-back-to-back kills to pull Olmsted Falls within 23-21. Emily Odon then fired consecutive aces as the Bulldogs went up 24-23, but Tessena drilled the equalizer. Hrics appeared to give the Hornets a 25-24 advantage, but they were penalized for serving out of order, giving Olmsted Falls another set point. Kate Weber made a one-hand stab to keep play alive, which Scavuzzo fed to Tessena to make it 25-25. Hrics and Tessena then ended the match with block/kills, continuing the dream season for a Highland team that only returned three players with significant varsity experience. Izzy Shank delivered three of her eight kills in the fourth, while Maya Piechowiak added six kills. Fellow junior Sydney Smith had seven assists in the victory. "We were all pretty nervous when they had set points, but the seniors made sure that we were calm and focused so we could pull through," said Shank, who had the match-winning kill two days earlier against Wooster. "Knowing that we hadn't won districts in 32 years was something we were all aware of. It's unbelievable to be the team that ended that drought." Contact Brian Dulik at brisports@hotmail.com. Follow him @BrianDulik on Twitter.