Wisconsin High School Sports | Wisconsin Sports Network | WisSports.net

DSHA completed an impressive sweep of D.C. Everest 3-0 (27-25, 25-15, 25-16) in a Division 1 state quarterfinal game.

Bradley recruit Annie Ertz was nearly unstoppable, always finding a way to make a big play when her team needed it most.  Ertz lead the Dashers with 20 kills, 14 digs, and 4 blocks.

DSHA junior Katie Arnold also gave major contributions off the bench.  She provided DSHA with 11 kills and a .500 hitting percentage.

Even though DSHA managed to sweep D.C. Everest, the match was very back and forth.  In the 2nd set, DSHA junior Katie Rolfe started a run by slamming down a kill to tie it 10-10.  From there, DSHA never looked back; the Dashers went on a 9-0 run to virtually put the game away.

D.C. Everest struggled to get in a groove during much of the match.  The Evergreens combined to hit .151 as a team, also only combining for 29 digs and 3 blocks.  Sophomore Jenna Rombalski and junior Regan Stefan both were able to reach double-digit kills respectively. 

Coming off the bench, Appleton North sophomore Mikaylah Van Lanen and junior Alyssa Wolslegel both played major roles in the 3-1 (25-23, 28-26, 12-25, 25-16) victory over Greendale in a Division 1 state quarterfinal game.

Appleton North got off to a slow start in the 1st set, but the nerves quickly settled.  Appleton North and Greendale went back and forth throughout the 1st set.  At 23-23, Greendale had a costly serving error into the net to put Appleton North up 24-23.  Appleton North made a couple hustle plays on the final point to seal up the 25-23 victory in the 1st set.

A similar situation arose late in the 2nd set with the match tied at 26-26.  Appleton North junior Alyssa Wolslegel came up in the clutch and put down two monster kills for point 27 and 28 to finish the set.

The 4th set also belonged to the Lightning.  Greendale could never get in a rhythm and gave up many points to Appleton North on unforced hitting errors.

Greendale senior Lauren Litzau lead the team with 17 kills, sophomore Jessica Grabowski had 18 digs, and freshman Kayce Litzau had 27 assists.

The Verona Wildcats were not going to let their season come to an end without putting up a fight, and fight they did.  Verona rallied from a 0-2 deficit to knock off Burlington 3-2 (21-25, 14-25, 25-22, 25-17, 15-11) a Division 1 state quarterfinal game.

Things looked bleak for Verona early on.  The Wildcats hit .000 in the 1st set and only .043 in the 2nd set.  The tides turned though in 3rd set.  Verona took their 1st lead of the set at 12-11, and they never trailed again the rest of the set.  Verona improved their hitting percentage to .600 compared in Burlington’s .147 in the 3rd.  The 4th set was even more dominant for Verona.  Seniors Julie Touchett and Grace Mueller came up with key kills to help land the 4th set equalizer.  Burlington jumped out to a 6-0 lead on Verona in the 5th set, but the senior-laden Wildcats refused to back down.  Wisconsin basketball recruit, Grace Mueller, had back-to-back scoring plays with a block and a kill to ultimately put Verona up 12-9.

Indiana University recruit and Verona senior Victoria Brisack lead the team with an impressive 41 assists, as well as a .643 hitting percentage, 10 kills, and 8 digs.  Kylie Schmaltz tallied 20 kills and Julie Touchett added 13 kills for Verona.

Burlington senior Quinn Spieker had an impressive match with 29 kills and 11 digs.  Spieker will be heading to North Carolina State next year to play volleyball.

Oconomowoc won in thrilling fashion 3-2 (20-25, 25-21, 27-25, 18-25, 15-11) over Neenah in a nearly 2-hour match in a Division 1 state quarterfinal game.

Oconomowoc seniors Heather Moutvic and Leah Fenske helped guide the Raccoons to the 5 set victory.  The duo combined for 31 of the team’s 57 kills in the match.  Moutvic has been named 1st team all-conference every year, and is a finalist for the Wendy’s Heisman Award.  Fenske is a two-time 1st team all-conference member, and she will be attending UW-Parkside next year to play volleyball.

Neenah senior Hope Werch left her mark on the match with 27 kills and 16 digs.  Werch has verbally committed to play for Marquette next year.

Neenah’s roster consists of only 3 seniors, and many contributors to this state team will return next year.  Look out for the Rockets in 2016.

DSHA (44-5) will attempt to advance to its 2nd straight state championship game tomorrow night when it take on Appleton North (35-9) in a Division 1 state semifinal game scheduled for 7:00pm.

Both of these teams will be coming off hard fought 5 set matches, but Verona and Oconomowoc will be up to the task.  Verona features 9 seniors and Oconomowoc has 7.  Verona (34-5) and Oconomowoc (30-3) will square off tomorrow night in a Division 1 semifinal game scheduled for 7:00pm.