SHAWNEE TOWNSHIP — It was hard to tell sometimes whether Saturday night was a teen dance party or a high school volleyball match.
In other words, Shawnee’s three-set win against Spencerville went exactly the way the Indians hoped. The “Sets and Spikes at Sundown” at Shawnee Stadium was believed to be the first-ever regular-season volleyball match played outside in Ohio.
“We learned that it’s super important to always have fun,” said Shawnee’s Maggie Jordan, a senior libero. “A lot of times, if you take it too seriously, there will be times where you just shut down and are mentally like, ‘I don’t want to be here.’ But when you have fun and you’re cheering on your team, it really helps you stay engaged in the game. It helps you play better.”
The Indians (6-2) beat the Bearcats in straight sets, 25-8, 25-15, 25-8. Some may remember the night for the Ohio Northern University-bound Jordan successfully serving the final 15 points of the third set, including three straight aces at one point. Many more will likely remember it for watching the players dance during timeouts to the tunes of DJ Frenzy and both teams’ head coaches joining in dancing the “Stanky Leg.”
“I can be probably kind of silly,” Shawnee coach Brooke Hutchins said, “So we just try to kind of share that infectious spirit. Obviously this environment is a little atypical with bringing the indoor outdoor, so we just kind of partied on the field.”
Shawnee brought in a sports court from Newark, setting it up between the 40-yard lines on the football field. The Shawnee players’ fathers assembled the red-and-blue colored court Saturday afternoon, one 16-inch square section at a time. A crowd estimated at 500 people watched from the home-side football stands and in folding chairs along the sideline to give it the feel of a high-energy club volleyball event.
Hutchins said she hopes to make the event an annual event, perhaps bringing in a few more teams next year. It was inspired by a highly attended outdoor volleyball match at Nebraska and a summer league event at Newark Catholic, which provided the floor.
The humidity made the court slippery at times, causing brief breaks while players and officials wiped down sections of the floor.
As for the on-court product, Shawnee asserted its dominance throughout as the sun set at Shawnee Stadium.
Shawnee junior Karleigh Hutchins and seniors Lea Rudasil and Jordan each had four aces while serving. Gianna Upshaw, a 5-10 freshman, added a team-high five kills, while Upshaw and senior Mackenzie Brickner each had two blocks.
Spencerville (0-4) looked to sophomore Briley Cook for four kills and three blocks, while senior Kelsey Lee added three kills and two blocks.
The Indians jumped out to a 7-0 lead in the first set, including three aces by Karleigh Hutchins. Rudasil added three straight aces near the end of the set.
Spencerville played closer in the second set, pulling within 5-4 and 12-9 before the Indians went on a run. Shawnee wrapped up with three straight kills, including a block and a kill by Liz Kinnear to end the second set.
The Bearcats, who only have two seniors on the roster, fought valiantly in the third set, leading 3-2 early and pulling back within 8-7. Their inexperience showed as Shawnee rallied, though.
“They gave it their all,” Spencerville coach Keeley Layman said. “I knew there were going to be some jitters to begin with, but they played through it for the most part. There were a few times when they started playing a little timid. They were hitting them out of bounds, but I just kept telling them to play to their full potential.”
Meanwhile, the defending Western Buckeye League champion Indians showed some of what they could do.
“We’re working on consistency and discipline and just the mental side of the game,” coach Hutchins said. “We have some of our younger girls stepping into more significant roles, sot they’re just fighting through the adversity because when their minds are right, their bodies kind of come along with it, and I think they’re unstoppable.”
And when they’re having fun, they’re hard to stop, Jordan said.
“We talked together as a team, like, hey, we want to make this as fun as possible, because we don’t know when we’re going to be able to do something like this again. For a few of us, this is our last year together. So it was really fun to get to have this opportunity.”
Reach David Trinko at 567-242-0467 or on Twitter @Lima_Trinko.
