Phil Brozynski’s girls volleyball notebook

After the IHSA board voted to delay it one year, the “success factor” will likely be implemented for the 2015-16 school season.

What does that mean for volleyball?

St. Francis (38-4), which won its third straight state title last weekend, will undoubtedly join the Class 4A ranks, although the school is bordering on the 3A-4A bubble anyway. This year, the school was just 36 students shy of being elevated into Class 4A.

Keith Country Day (39-2) — a private school near Rockford led by UConn recruit Iman McGarry which rolled to its third straight Class 1A state title by blasting tiny Hartsburg-Emden (69 students) in the state championship game 25-11, 25-23 — will be in Class 2A next year.

Other teams that could be in line for a change in class would be Breese Mater Dei (state title in 2011, regional final in 2013, third-place in 2014) and Joliet Catholic, which reached the sectional semifinals in 2012, the sectional finals in 2013 and advanced to the state title game in 2014.

Don’t be surprised to see St. Francis assigned to the same sectional as Benet in 2015 with the winner drawing the Mother McAuley sectional winner in the supersectional. What better way to further water down the state finals?

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One idea to improve the state tournament in volleyball that was being passed around in Normal was seeding the sectional winners into an eight-team bracket and letting that bracket play out through the rest of the tournament.

That would certainly go a long way to creating a more competitive and more attractive state finals, and would have certainly avoided the Benet-Mother McAuley matchup at the Hinsdale Central supersectional that was, no matter what the IHSA says, the “true” state championship game.

It would also serve the IHSA’s desire for “geographical representation” since the sectionals themselves would create supersectional qualifiers from different regions of the state. With supersectionals played on Saturday, travel would not be an issue.

The seeding could be done by a committee of coaches, advisory committee members and even the media, which is probably more familiar with the teams and their strengths and can at least be counted on to participate.

One of the issues with the 2014 Class 4A tournament was the failure of certain coaches to provide seeding information in the T.F. South sectional, leading to No. 9-seeded Plainfield North’s “upset” of top-seeded Lincoln-Way North in a regional final.

Had such a system been in place for the 2014 tournament in Class 4A, for example, the supersectionals (in bracket order) might have looked like this: McAuley vs. Loyola, Libertyville vs. Plainfield North, Normal vs. Crystal Lake South and Benet vs. De La Salle.

Assuming the higher seeds won, Benet and Normal would have played in a state semifinal anyway, but McAuley and Benet would have met in the state championship at Redbird Arena instead of the Hinsdale Central supersectional.

Football essentially does the same thing by seeding an entire 32-team bracket, although it is based on records. Mount Carmel and Providence fans might want to argue that their system does not go far enough.

But volleyball coaches have been asking a long time, “Why not us?”

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Among the teams that advanced to state in 2014, which likely to be among the top teams in 2015?

St. Francis returns Molly Haggerty, Kamryn and Delaney Malloy and setter Danielle Messa from its three-time Class 3A championship team, although the Spartans will likely have to earn their next title in the Class 4A tournament.

Loyola brings back its entire lineup from this year’s fourth-place finisher, including 6-2 outside hitter Christina Reed, setter Katie Randolph, libero Lauren Stadler, outside hitter Olivia Van Zelst and middle hitter Kate Pillion.

Although middle hitter Alex Basler and setter Lizzie Apgar are graduating, Libertyville welcomes back outside/setter Anna Lillydahl, outside hitter Francesca Fusco, middle hitter Hannah Zerwas and middle hitter Annika Hawkinson.

Don’t count out Benet. Although Dana Griffin, Rachael Fara, Natalie Canulli and Marissa Tassone graduate, the Redwings will still have junior setter Sara Nielsen, sophomore outside Veronica Snelling, junior outside Tiffany Clark and junior libero Brittany Mankowski.

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Many fans in Normal missed the best state title game of the weekend.

In Class 2A, Deer-Creek Mackinaw, a public school of 311 students in Tazewell County near Peoria whose best player in going to Lipscomb, rallied from a first-game blowout and an 18-12 deficit in Game 2 to beat Dakota, 10-25, 25-22, 25-23.

“This is a special group,” Dee-Mack coach Brandon Mueller said. “They took me along for this ride. I knew it was going to be something special. Last year as well. To come in here and play Dakota the way we did tonight was unbelievable.”

The Chiefs, who were never in Game 1, found themselves down 18-12 in Game 2. But five hitting errors by Dakota (enrollment: 258) and a service ace by Dee-Mack sophomore Addie Patton gave the eventual champions a 21-19 lead.

“These girls were battle tested all year,” Mueller said. “They had the attitude that they were going to keep fighting for every point no matter what the score was, and that’s kind of what I told them. I don’t care what the score is, make them earn every point.

“Dakota was an unbelievable team. Their defense was incredible. I don’t know what the turning point was. But just looking at these girls when they were down 18-12, just seeing that fight, that energy. They’re a confident group. They just wanted it.”

Dee-Mack’s 5-foot-9 Lipscomb-bound outside hitter Lauren Anderson, who finished with 10 kills including the match-winner, was asked how this year’s match-winner compared to two years ago when she put Dakota away on match point.

“This one was sweeter just because it was a harder,” she said. “We were fighting for every point, scrapping, knowing that we had to play from behind, whereas two years ago we led the whole way. This time it was just that much sweeter.”

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Quote of the weekend: “We were already on the bus, parading around Breese with a fire truck in front of us.” – Mater Dei coach Chad Rakers, when asked what happened in the second game after the Knights breezed to a first-game win over Montini in the Class 3A third-place match.

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Quote of the weekend, Part II: “Just being here, and being the first time in school history, was amazing. The atmosphere was awesome. It was super fun. All of us getting together and being a family for the weekend….” – Montini’s Monica Loftus on the Broncos’ first trip to the state tournament.

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There have been teams in the past on which sisters have played and won state championships. But have there ever been two sisters who played for different teams and both won state championships on the same weekend?

Sarah Muisenga, a senior outside hitter for St. Francis, had five kills in the Spartans’ 25-18, 25-23 victory over Joliet Catholic in the Class 3A championship match. Her younger sister, Allison, is a sophomore at Benet who was brought up to the varsity during the state tournament as a server and back-up setter.