Stillwater volleyball coach Sara Baumgard swears it's not a game plan, but after the Ponies rallied from two sets down to beat No. 3 seed Rogers 21-25, 18-25, 25-20, 27-25, 17-15 in the Class 4A quarterfinals Wednesday, she said it probably should be. The big comeback is something Stillwater has pulled off frequently this season.
Her players seem to relish it.
"You should see all the gray hairs I'm getting this season," Baumgard said. "It's like they like it,"
"We thrive on it," senior middle hitter Mackenzie Peters said, nodding. "Losing our first two sets motivates us a heck of a lot, because that's when we get in our groove."
"Nobody outworks a Pony," senior setter Alexa Lehman chimed in.
Rogers won the first two sets, but the Royals' game began to come apart in the third set. Stillwater (20-10) tightened up its defense, forcing Rogers to search for points. Royals coach Bo Schmidt has admitted that his team plays a high-risk, high-reward style, particularly when it comes to serving.
Usually it pays off. Wednesday it cost the Royals dearly. Rogers (28-4) made 25 service errors in the match.
"We made a lot of errors, but part of the way we play, it comes with that," Schmidt said. "We're not usually that inconsistent. It's a bigger stage, and it impacted how we served."
While errors cost Rogers, Stillwater's defense and relentless style made the biggest differences in the game.
"Our defense, we just keep going and never give up," said Peters, who finished with a team-high 17 kills. "They get a great dig, we get another one right back at them."
Rogers junior outside hitter Anya Schmidt was pointed in her disappointment.
"They wanted to win more than we did," she said with teary eyes.
Baumgard praised her team's resilience and its timing. "This team is peaking right now," she said.
