GILMAN VOLLEYBALL - Gilman hopefully catching fire at just the right time

GILMAN VOLLEYBALL

The run started a little later than it did last fall, but there is a similar feeling for this year’s Gilman Pirates as they head into WIAA Division 5 volleyball post-season play.

Sitting at a somewhat disappointing 10-10 coming into the last week of the regular season, Gilman’s veteran squad ripped off six straight wins to end the regular season, including Tuesday’s 3-1 victory over Cadott in the fifth-place match of the Cloverbelt Conference Crossovers.

On Saturday, the Pirates swept four opponents to claim the championship of their own nine-team tournament. That followed what might be the season’s turning point, a 32 win at Eastern Cloverbelt runner-up Colby where the Pirates lost the first games but roared back to take the match.

“What a great run for us this last week,” Gilman head coach Janice Komanec said. “Coming back from down two against Colby to take the reverse sweep against the secondplace team was a great momentum builder for us. Playing at a high level on Saturday and not dropping a set is also a great momentum builder. And then to take Cadott on Tuesday night in four sets after dropping set two just keeps things rolling.”

Seeding for the WIAA’s new Division 5 sectional half-bracket took place Wednesday. Komanec felt the Pirates were in position to land the two-seed behind Eastern Cloverbelt Conference champion Columbus Catholic. A match with the Dons would remain a challenge, but overall, a sectional bracket filled with what seemed like some big names when it first came out, now looks quite doable for the defending Division 4 regional champions.

Regional matches are set for Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday next week.

“We’ve gone 6-0 since Thursday and there couldn’t be a better time for it as we head into the playoffs,” Komanec said.

Gilman’s win over Cadott Tuesday helped the East earn a split of the six crossover matches held that night. Colby also beat McDonell Central 3-2 in the second-place match and Neillsville outlasted Bloomer 3-2 in the fourth-place match. Columbus Catholic plays Eau Claire Regis tonight, Thursday, for the overall title.

It took awhile but the Pirates’ push to improve their hitting percentage and reduce their unforced errors paid off all week. Against Cadott, the Pirates had three players with hitting percentages above .300 and served at a 94% success rate.

Gilman won the first set 25-16. After a 25-16 letdown in set two, the Pirates were in command the rest of the way, winning 25-17 and 25-21.

Aided by 30 Abby Chaplinski assists, Claire Drier led Gilman with 15 kills, Aubrey Mann had nine and Allie Olynick had five. Chaplinski and Jaylyn Orth had four each and Addy Vick added three.

Chaplinski served four aces, Drier had three and Jaylen Copenhaver had two.

Defensively, Orth had five total blocks, Olynick and Vick had four each and Chaplinski and Drier had two apiece. Kayleigh James had 21 digs, Chaplinski had 15, Drier and Copenhaver had 12 each and Kenlyn Kroeplin had 10.

“We have been focusing all season on consistency in serve and attack and serve receive,” Komanec said. “Our serving percentages and our hitting percentages are moving up individually and as a team. We’re seeing a higher number of players reaching our hitting percentage goals each night. Instead of just one hitting it, we’re seeing two or three and possibly even four girls reaching those numbers.”

First place

About 36 hours after the uplifting win at Colby, the Pirates started the Gilman Invitational by smoking Augusta 25-14, 25-13. They didn’t stop there.

Solon Springs was next in pool play and the Pirates beat the Eagles by the same scores, 25-14, 25-13.

Pool winners Gilman, Owen-Withee and Phillips then met in a round robin to determine first through third place.

Gilman swept its conference rival Owen-Withee 25-21, 25-12 and Marawood North contender Phillips 25-16, 25-20 to complete its impressive day.

Komanec said Gilman had just five hitting errors against Phillips and five against Owen-Withee. As a team, Gilman had a strong hitting percentage of .257.

For the day, Drier had 22 kills. Chaplinski had 20, Orth had 14, Vick had 11 and Mann added eight. Chaplinski had 54 assists and a team-high seven service aces. Drier served six aces in the tournament, James had five and Kroeplin had three.

James was the digs leader with 39. Chaplinski had 31, Drier had 23, Kroeplin had 13 and Copenhaver had 10. Orth had seven total blocks, Chaplinski had six and Olynick had four.

Gilman didn’t end up where it wanted to in the Eastern Cloverbelt Conference standings, but league play ended on a high note Thursday when the Pirates rallied from a 2-0 deficit to stun host Colby 3-2.

The Hornets came into the match clinging to hope of being part of a threeway tie atop the conference. The loss ended that hope as did Columbus Catholic’s 3-0 sweep of Loyal, which gave the Dons a 7-0 conference record and their eighth straight conference title.

Gilman finished 4-3, tied for fourth place with Neillsville, who beat the Pirates in a five-game match two weeks earlier.

The first two sets in this match could’ve gone either way. Gilman trailed the first one 14-9, went on a 6-0 run with James serving to go up 15-14 and later took a 23-20 lead. The Pirates got set point at 24-22 when Drier tooled a Hornet blocker, but Colby got three good swings from their left-handed standout hitter Daelyn Rieck and another kill from Lilly Brzezinski to eventually win it 27-25.

Colby built a 17-9 lead in game two before the Pirates made a run, getting as close as 21-20 before falling 25-22. While they didn’t come back and win the set, the Pirates started to play their best volleyball in that late stretch.

Gilman stayed alive in a tight third game where neither team led by more than two until Chaplinski’s push found a hole in the middle of Colby’s defense for a 22-19 Gilman lead. Drier’s kill made it 24-22, Vick’s kill put Gilman up 25-24 and Colby’s error on the next point got Gilman on the board at 26-24.

Gilman never trailed in game four, jumping ahead 4-0 and 94. The Hornets did eventually tie it at 20-20 and 21-21, but a Drier kill and an Orth kill gave Gilman a 23-22 lead when Drier’s tip from the left side perfectly hit the Colby sideline. A point later, Drier won a freeball battle at the net to get Gilman back to even with a 25-23 win.

Kroeplin served the Pirates to a quick 5-0 lead in the fifth set as the momentum was fully on Gilman’s side. Orth blocked Rieck’s off-speed attack for an 11-2 lead, and Vick and Orth teamed up to block an attack from Harrison Schmitt that quickly got Gilman to match point at 14-3.

That final point didn’t come easily as Hornet setter Savana Thomsen served the Hornets within 14-10 before a net violation ended the match at 15-10.

Drier had 15 kills, Vick and Orth had nine each and Olynick and Mann had four apiece. Chaplinski set up 36 assists. Kroeplin and James each had two aces.

Olynick had a hand in five blocks. Orth had four and Mann had three. James had 24 digs, one more than Chaplinski. Kroeplin and Drier had 10 apiece and Copenhaver had seven.

Medford’s Sophia Steinman and Shayla Radlinger try to block a tip attempt from Antigo’s Lola Cornelius during the fourth set of Tuesday’s 3-1 win over the Robins. MATT FREY/THE STAR NEWS

With a 4-0 record Saturday, the Gilman Pirates won the championship trophy in their own nine-team Gilman Invitational. Team members include (front l. to r.) Alison Krizan, Jaylyn Orth, Abby Chaplinski, Kenlyn Kroeplin, Jaylen Copenhaver, Kayleigh James, Claire Drier, Paige Daley, (back) Kylee Copenhaver, Aubrey Mann, Mylie Stephens, Allie Olynick, Addy Vick and Aubrey Steinbach. SUBMITTED PHOTO

Gilman’s Allie Olynick pushes the volleyball past Augusta’s Madelyn Meyer (10) and Tatum Krueger during the first set of the Pirates’ first-round sweep Saturday. MATT FREY/THE STAR NEWS