No. 1 Hamilton Southeastern wins Sectional 8, beat Westfield & Fishers
The Hamilton Southeastern volleyball team powered its way to the Class 4A Sectional 8 championship on Saturday.
The No. 1-ranked Royals hosted the sectional and gave their fans plenty to cheer about. Southeastern won both of its Saturday matches in straight sets, beating Westfield 25-16, 25-11, 25-12 in the morning semi-final, then defeating last year’s sectional champion Fishers 25-19, 25-12, 25-12 in the evening championship match.
“They were magnificent today,” said HSE coach Jason Young. He was impressed with how his team handled the Tigers, saying that Fishers came out with “a lot of energy.
“They were the defending sectional champions,” said Young. “They were here to defend their championship, so we had to take it from them. Once our defensive energy picked up, it just seemed like the momentum swung in our way. We played hard the entire match, and it’s just really nice to see it pay off with a three-set victory.”
The Royals’ offense played pretty well, too. Avery Hobson put down 18 kills for Southeastern, while Lauren Harden hit 10. Christy served three aces. Hinshaw handed out 21 assists.
The Hamilton Southeastern volleyball team powered its way to the Sectional 8 championship on Saturday. The host Royals beat Westfield in the semi-finals and Fishers in the final, both in straight sets. (Kirk Green)
Breonna Goss was a force at the net, making six block assists and two solo blocks. Harden also had four block assists. Hobson collected 15 digs, while Sophie Ledbetter had 13 and Hinshaw had 11.
“We just focus on the next game, one game at a time, just play our hardest and just continue going,” said Hobson, one of the seniors on the Southeastern team. The Royals won their sixth sectional title in program history and their first since 2020.
Ava Vickers led Fishers with five kills, while Margo Hernandez dished out 14 assists. Brynn Zastrow made 14 digs and Leslie Groff had 10. Fishers finished its season 19-9 and won a tough five-set match over Noblesville, 24-26, 19-25, 25-19, 25-17, 15-11, to reach the championship.
The Millers finished their season 24-7. Seniors Ava Rundle, Diana Cox, Ava Harris, Erika Fitzgerald and Gabby Weihe led the way for Noblesville.
(Left) Fishers’ Ava Vickers was one of the senior leaders for the Tigers this season and is committed to play college volleyball at Indiana University.
(Center) Noblesville’s Reese Resmer goes up to spike the ball. The Millers fell to Fishers in a tough semi-final match, finishing their season 24-7.
(Right) Westfield’s Mallory Neale was one of the defensive leaders for the Shamrocks this season. (Kirk Green)
“We had definitely a chip on our shoulder from Mudsock, knowing that we didn’t play the way that we needed to play,” said Tigers coach Steven Peek. “We wanted to do that right away. And I do think we put our best out there tonight. Sometimes we’re an inconsistent team and the sport punishes you for that. But at the same time, we’re really, really happy with just a lot of moments where we really scrapped and did things that we weren’t doing even three weeks ago.
Westfield finished its season 14-13. Dani Schade hit six kills in the semi-final, while Mallory Neale and Kaylee Sutcliffe led the defense.
The Royals are 30-1 for the season and advance to next Saturday’s Noblesville regional. Southeastern plays Fort Wayne Carroll in the first semi-final at 10 a.m., followed by McCutcheon and Homestead in the noon second semi-final. The championship will be played at 6 p.m.
GOLDEN EAGLES WIN FIRST-EVER SECTIONAL
Guerin Catholic hosted Class 3A Sectional 27, and the Golden Eagles made history on Saturday night by winning their first-ever sectional championship.
In the morning semi-final, Guerin Catholic beat Shortridge 25-11, 25-9, 25-12. The Golden Eagles picked up another sweep in the final, beating Hamilton Heights 25-15, 25-17, 25-16 to claim the trophy.
“I think this program was very hungry from the start, and they were willing to do anything to get there,” said GC coach Hailey Brown. “And these girls worked hard every day in practice with every drill we gave them. So, they earned this within every point. It wasn’t just one thing. It’s just the hunger for it.”
Guerin Catholic is 15-17 for the season, but the Golden Eagles play a difficult schedule. The Circle City Conference has several traditionally good teams, such as Brebeuf Jesuit and Bishop Chatard.
“Our schedule’s a tough schedule,” said Brown. “We kind of do that on purpose to prepare our girls for tough times. And they have just fought all year long. Our record doesn’t necessarily show how good we are. I think we challenge everybody we play and we play tough. And it pays off.”
The team chemistry also is a factor as well.
“It’s everything,” said GC senior Ella Murphy. “Having everyone as my best friend on that court. It really makes or breaks a team.”
The Huskies reached the final with a straight-set win over Heritage Christian, 25-17, 25-22, 26-24. Heights finished its season 17-13.
“It’s a little bit of a rebuilding year for us,” said Huskies coach Steve Ward. “They came together throughout the year and started playing harder and got to know each other and played well as a team.”
Guerin Catholic will play at the Monrovia regional next Saturday, taking on Speedway in the second semi-final at noon. Western Boone and Northview play the first semi-final at 10 a.m., with the winners meeting at 7 p.m. for the championship.
SHERIDAN FALLS AT PARK TUDOR
Sheridan dropped a straight-set match to Cascade at the Class 2A Sectional 43 at Park Tudor Saturday morning, 25-15, 25-15, 25-9.
Senne IJzer led the offense with 11 kills, while Payton Warren had four kills. IJzer also served one ace. Nova Cross handed out 15 assists. On defense, Jacquellynne Bates collected 19 digs, with IJzer and Warren both getting 12 digs. Cross had eight digs and Meredith Krupp collected five. Shelby Eaton had a solo block and Claudia Headlee and Cross both had one block assist.
The Blackhawks finished the season 6-19.