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By Dana Harding (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
Springfield, Mo. — If practice does indeed make perfect, Ozark just might be on its way to a ninth straight Final Four appearance.
In the Class 4 District 11 championship match, the Lady Tigers downed Kickapoo in a three-set thriller (25-21, 24-26, 25-17).
After an August loss to the Kickapoo ended Ozark’s 11-game streak against its Springfield rival, the Lady Tigers came out Wednesday evening determined to start a new one.
After an extensive scouting analysis, Ozark prepared for the brutal matchup by simulating Kickapoo’s personnel, game plan and tendencies over a series of practices.
Ozark’s Julia McCown talked about the irony simulating your opponent.
“We prepared by, basically, being them,” McCown said. “We just did that for multiple practices until we got it down in our head, and when we came out here, we were just one-hundred percent.”
Ozark head coach Adeana Brewer likened the practice repetition to a final exam.
CLICK HERE FOR PHOTOS OF THE MATCH
“They were so prepared for what was going to be coming at them,” Brewer said. “They knew serves, they knew offense and they knew how to execute game plan so well, it’s just like being prepared for a test. If you’re confident in your ability because you put in the preparation, then you don’t have to worry about it. You can just go in and perform. ”
And perform they did.
On a night where her team needed her most, McCown dominated the net.
Six of the 6-foot-2 junior’s 16 kills came in the final set and helped Ozark jump out to an early lead. Senior Macy Putt also finished with 16 to lead Ozark.
After splitting the first two sets, a 4-0 Ozark run in the third captured an early momentum boost and put the Lady Tigers up 9-4.
Each time Kickapoo would rally, Ozark’s defense responded either at the net or along the back row. A few key adjustments allowed the Lady Tiger blockers to be in better position down the stretch.
“We felt like they were getting a lot of kills on their outside off of our right-side block,” Brewer said. “I felt like our blocking, whether we got blocks, or we just were putting a more disciplined block on the right side, it allowed our floor defense to play better and set up so we could get digs.”
With its defense working to slow down the Kickapoo attack, Ozark’s hitters were able to be more aggressive, as well.
McCown and senior Macy Putt consistently found openings as the match wore on.
“We wanted to try to get Julia and Macy against their smaller blockers,” Brewer said. “When each attacker is driving and transitioning hard, blockers on the other side of the net, because they are so offensively powerful, they have to stay with those attackers, so one attacker is going to be open, and there’s going to be some holes in the block that you can exploit.”
Kickapoo made a final rally to cut the Ozark lead to 21-17; however, a series of four-straight miscues closed out the match for the Lady Chiefs.
Head coach Marci Johnson praised her team’s willingness to come out fighting for the title.
“You’re going to have to take risks to beat a team like Ozark,” Johnson said. “With those risks, comes the possibility of big plays or errors, so you just have to go for it. Yeah, we had a few unforced errors, but it wasn’t because we weren’t taking risks. They fought for it, and that was the bottom line … and they live to play another game.”
Kickapoo (28-7) was led by junior Kennedy Aurentz’s 9 kills. Senior Harper Auman tallied 32 assists and three aces, while senior Leah Vokolek notched 19 digs.
For the Lady Tigers, junior Kennedee Anderson finished with 36 assists, and junior Brynn Bonewell added 10 digs.
Next up for Ozark (28-7-2) is a sectional-round matchup against Jefferson City on Saturday, Oct. 21.
Class 4 District 11 Championship: Ozark – 2, Kickapoo – 1 (25-21, 24-26, 25-17)
Semifinal: Ozark – 2, Branson – 0 (25-4, 25-11)
Semifinal: Kickapoo – 2, Nixa – 0 (25-20, 25-17)
