Girls volleyball: Highland beats Revere, on verge of seventh straight league title

GRANGER TWP. — An improbable turnaround and 11 straight Suburban League American Conference victories have the Highland volleyball team on the cusp of making history.Kamryn Heldreth collected 13 kills, four blocks and four aces, and fellow senior Carley Niese made 10 digs and scored 10 service points as the Hornets swept archrival Revere 25-23, 26-24, 25-22 to remain in a first-place tie in the conference Tuesday.Highland (13-5, 11-2), which lost its first two league matches, is guaranteed of at least sharing a Medina County-record seventh consecutive conference championship if it wins at Cuyahoga Falls on Thursday."I'm just so happy because the seniors all wanted this so bad tonight," middle hitter Heldreth said. "Even when we started 0-2 in the SL, we stayed somewhat composed, and it only made us work harder in the end to get to this point."Seven straight league titles means a lot to us because we want to continue that tradition."All six 12th-graders made a number of clutch plays on senior night, allowing the Hornets to keep pace with American co-leader Aurora. The Greenmen host Barberton in their conference finale.Every one of them was needed to put away the Minutemen (15-5, 9-4), who were eliminated from title contention with the loss.Outside hitter Alyssa Koehler had four of her eight kills in the final set, along with nine digs. Lily Vojtko posted seven kills and four blocks, and Abby Capper had three kills and three blocks in the finale, finishing with five and four, respectively.Defensive specialist Ava Andrews bolstered her big-match reputation with nine digs and two critical service runs, teaming with libero Niese to lock down the back row against physically imposing Revere."The seniors knew this was do or die, but they looked at it with excitement, not pressure," Highland coach Laura Merk said. "They wanted to enjoy the moment and have a special night. They did and they all played really well."Senior Tessa Milicia powered the Minutemen with 18 assists and eight kills, while sophomore Ali Linderbaum led all players with 14 kills and six blocks. Sophomore Maddie Milicia had three aces and freshman Emily Stupczy chipped in six kills and five blocks.The Hornets' rookies also stepped up, including setter Payton Hrics. The sophomore was a calming presence throughout with 12 assists, 10 digs and seven points."It was pure determination from everyone on the team to get to this position," Hrics said. "When we lost our first two in the league, we thought, 'OK, this might be tough to get out of,' but we never quit."One day at practice, it was like it just clicked and we decided that we really needed this. Now, we're one win away from pulling it off."Freshman outside hitter Samantha Ross and junior middle hitter Emeri Gausman each had three kills in the third set, and freshman setter Emma Tramonte dished out 20 assists for Highland. All three are in their initial varsity season.With Cuyahoga Falls and Barberton a combined 6-32 overall and zero SL wins against the top six teams in the standings, the Hornets and Aurora should share the crown.But nothing in sports or life is guaranteed, which Merk stressed after the victory."It's up to us to finish the job at Cuyahoga Falls," she said. "We've done an incredible job to put ourselves in this position, but the mission isn't complete yet."Contact Brian Dulik at sports@medina-gazette.com. Follow him @BrianDulik on X.