LIVT Day 1 Rundown
The action comes fast at an event like the Louisville Invitational Volleyball Tournament (LIVT)! Friday’s pool play – featuring eight pools of three teams – kicked off at 6:30 pm and within a few hours the gold bracket was all set for Saturday. With just the pool winners advancing from Friday’s play, there was no margin for error. No pools ended in a three-way tie. Here’s how the gold bracket measures up: — Mother McAuley IL v Sacred Heart Academy KY — Notre Dame Academy KY v Mount Notre Dame OH — St. Joseph OH v St. Ursula Academy OH — Assumption KY v duPont Manual KY Catch our Day 1 rundown below plus team spotlights and under the radar players. Top-seeded Mother McAuley’s 2-0 showing looked fine on paper but the undefeated Macs were close to tasting defeat for the first time. It took three sets to dispatch Walton GA, 20-25, 27-25, 25-17, (third sets are played to 25) and ultimately win its pool after sweeping Cardinal Gibbons NC. Assumption – the No. 2 seed – had a much smoother ride, allowing 20 points or more in just one set in sweeps over Ryle KY and Presentation KY. Pool 3 was where the action was! All three matches went the distance and when the smoke cleared it was the No. 3 team in the pool in St. Joseph which came out ahead. St. Joe upset No. 3 seed St. Henry KY in the opener, 25-19, 19-25, 26-24. St. Joe then knocked off Maryville TN in three, 27-29, 25-15, 25-22, to move to 2-0. St. Henry clipped Maryville, 25-20, 18-25, 25-23, to close the pool but neither had a shot at advancing at that point. Mount Notre Dame and Clearwater Central Catholic FL meet in the 1 v 2 match in Pool 4 with a spot in the quarterfinals on the line. Clearwater Central struck first but Mount Notre Dame hit last to advance, 17-25, 25-22, 25-18. Notre Dame Academy held down the No. 5 seed by going 2-0 in Pool 5. The Pandas swept Knoxville Catholic TN – winning Game 2 26-24 after trailing 24-22 – and Padua Franciscan OH to make the gold bracket. In Pool 6, it was St. Ursula Academy – the No. 2 team in the pool – delivering the goods with a 2-0 mark. The Bulldogs topped St. Joseph Academy MO and Male KY in posting a culminative score of 100-58. There was big news out of Pool 7 where duPont Manual upset Mercy Academy KY. Manual – the No. 2 team in the pool – bagged one for the public schools. The private schools are so dominate in Kentucky high school volleyball but Manual broke through in fine fashion with the three-set victory, 23-25, 26-24, 25-21, as senior outside Nya Bunton put the finishing touches on it with a backrow blast. Manual then swept Henry Clay KY to end its pool and move on. Sacred Heart Academy – in a very small upset – uprooted No. 8 seed Paul Laurence Dunbar in straight sets. SHA was the No. 9 seed and No. 2 team in the pool and then went on to sweep Notre Dame Academy OH to remain in the hunt. TEAM SPOTLIGHTS We spotlighted the top seeds in our preview. Let’s take a look at the teams we didn’t highlight which are still in the mix for the LIVT championship on Saturday. SACRED HEART ACADEMY – The Valkyries are among the underdogs in the gold bracket and will look to surprise Saturday. Sophomore outside Anna Powell is the team’s kill leader followed by another sophomore in middle Elise Hart. The young attack continues with another sophomore in outside Bridget Egan, who is just back from injury after missing much of the season. Senior Lainee Mack is instrumental in what she brings to the lineup. She’s both a setter and the team’s dig leader. Junior Kaeley Thoney Walz also sets for SHA. ST. JOSEPH – The Jaguars are led by sophomore S/RS Annabelle Groomes. She’s a 5-star recruit as a setter but she showed her offensive capabilities swinging from the front row Friday. The lefty was hard for opponents to stop. She’s the team’s kill leader and second in assists behind junior setter Olivia Castelluccio. Also featured is junior outside Hannah Alvarez and junior middle Hannah Foor, as well as senior libero Reilly Wadden. ST. URSULA ACADEMY – The Bulldogs have four key senior contributors in middle Ivey Stocks, setter Luca Fickell, libero Sydney Majick and pin hitter Ava Siefke. The team’s kill leader however is junior outside Addy Brus. Junior Molly Dorger hits for a high percentage out of the middle and entered Friday’s play as the block leader. DUPONT MANUAL – Leading the charge for the Lady Crimsons is senior Nya Bunton. The 5-star recruit plays middle in club and is headed to Texas but lines up on the outside for Manual. She’s a major force who can overwhelm defenses. With Bunton on the outside it’s senior Cecilia Roberts and junior Mary Hoerter taking up the middle spots. Senior Berkley Humphries and sophomore Aubrey Montgomery share setting duties, with Montgomery also hitting across the front row. Sophomore Kennedy Dawson does well at libero for the Lady Crimsons. UNDER THE RADAR PLAYERS We’ll have our normal presentation of the tournament Show Stoppers once Saturday’s action wraps up. For now, we highlight under the radar players who caught our eye Friday. Taylor McBride SR MB Male KY – The tallest member on the roster, McBride adds much needed size to the lineup across the front row. She’s a capable scorer when she gets a good look. She’s also a strong server who can help earn points from the line. Mia Telechbush JR L Dunbar KY – Telechbush is part of a scrappy Dunbar lineup that is undersized. She does well making hustle plays and keeping rallies going. Delaney Gash JR RS Dunbar KY – There’s not much height on the roster