Hartsburg-Emden claims the eighth Grade Class 1A State Championship for a record-breaking seventh year in a row

[March 18, 2018] 

In a quiet Stag gymnasium on a Saturday night, Coach Jennifer Hayes confirmed with the help of her son Austin doing the math, that the Stags win earlier in the evening was indeed a record-breaking seventh state title in a row in IESA Class 8-1A volleyball competition.

"Yes, seven state titles in a row," said the coach in a pretty quiet voice. She then looked to her son, Austin, sitting on the bleachers to get the rest of the details correct. "Ten out of 12 now, right?" Austin was spitting out numbers and his mom was processing the information and making sure nothing was mixed up between seventh and eighth grade. It's gets confusing when the coaching career has reached 25 years at the junior high level and the state championship medal count is up to numbers 28 and 29 this year, with the Stags having swept both the seventh and eighth grade state titles yet again.

For clarification that would be 28 titles in junior high and one state title in high school for Coach Hayes. Further clarification necessary here, too, Coach Hayes will begin her 24th season coaching at the high school level in the fall of 2018. While on Saturday night she just completed her 25th season coaching junior high volleyball.

Meanwhile, the record that the Stags broke on Saturday, as they carried home their seventh consecutive state championship trophy, was set back in 1993 thru 1998.

"Larry Sample from Jacksonville Turner had six in a row in the early '90s," said Coach Hayes. Austin, a junior in high school, chimed in from the bleachers, "I was nine years old the last time we lost." Coach Hayes smiled and said, "Yes, it always adds pressure where it's not needed."

And a little pressure was what the Stags were feeling Saturday in the championship match versus Grayville. After once again dominating the opponent on Friday night in the opening round and breezing through the semifinals on Saturday at noon, the Stags came up against a team that had beaten them just weeks ago at the Effingham Tournament. The Grayville Bison had defeated Hartem in three sets at Effingham during that tournament and Coach Hayes knew her team had a tough battle ahead.

The Stags took set one 25-23 Saturday in the championship match and after falling behind and trailing by two points much of set two, the Stags came out on top again by a score of 25-23.

Coach Hayes explains in her own words just what happened, "Yes, both sets were tight. I remember in the first game we had a pretty good lead. They were really having trouble with Lily (Barry). There was nothing that Lily couldn't do at that point. I mean, they just couldn't handle her. From front row, back row, everything she hit went in. Whether it hit the net, hit the line, it just was kinda crazy, like crazy-weird. And everything they brought back to us, our defense was amazing.

"We never missed a serve tonight, not one. We brought in some crazy balls. It was just a really great game.

"And then they leveled out and called a timeout and then slowly started plugging away at us. They put a double-block on Lily and she started forcing balls out of bounds, trying to cut around a block. So I had to get her re-leveled out and I think we tied it at about 21-21.

"At that point, I called a timeout, got 'em back and forth, back and forth. We tied at 23s and then I don't know what happened but we won."

Set one, a nail biter for sure, goes to the Stags by a score of 25-23.

Coach Hayes continues, "So in game two, we switched over and then that one was point for point. We got down and then we were up and then we were down. Really we were two points behind most of the game. Like it would come back and then they would get two points. Then we'd come back and they would get two points. We could just never quite get up and over the hump.

"I looked up and she (Grayville Coach Tricia Myers) called the timeout at, I believe 18-19, and so I brought my team back in to talk then. She didn't want me to get tied. And then we did tie it I believe around 21. Then called another timeout and then I think it was late 20s."

Coach Hayes is really going through the mental process it takes to coach such a matchup at this point. Her tired brain is still clicking on all cylinders as she recalls the earlier events of just the previous hours. The mental game is evident here with the strategy of calling a timeout here and there and guessing if and when the opposing coach is going to call a timeout.

"I knew if she....If I....I think it was tied 23-23....and I was like, "Okay if she serves, do I give her a whole minute to think about serving or do I wait until game point with two points?"

"I was trying to figure it out," the Stags coach explained, "So I don't know what happened but I decided to call the timeout. I talked to them. We got it back...24. Actually no, it had to have been...I had to have been down by two. Because I remember thinking to myself, whatever happened we sided-out, that we were still 24-23 even after we got sided-out, in order to just serve-receive it for the match. And I said, "Do not let it tie. Make sure that we get it."

A high-pressure situation that above all happens so quickly in the game of volleyball. What literally happens often takes just seconds on the court to play out.

Coach Hayes continues, word for word pulling from her vivid volleyball-filled mind, "We pass set, Lily had a huuuge kill, they brought it back and it was a great big melee. We came all the way over to the side, picked it up off of the tip, threw it back over and then Lily killed it again, after they blocked it and reset her for the match, 25-23. I mean it was just.....it was just a great junior high match to watch. It really could have went either way. But it was fantastic!"

Set two was a barn-burner and it goes to Hartem again by a score of 25-23.

Speaking of fantastic, while IESA does not keep records for kills, (IESA only tracks individual points), Lily Barry's performance of 27 kills Saturday in the state championship match had to account for something. Barry is a seventh grader and with five more years to go as a Stag, she will more than likely shatter some records in her future.

Meanwhile back in the school cafeteria Saturday night, family and friends gathered to celebrate the Stags and enjoy pizza and cake. The two eighth grade members of the Stags, Allison Woolard and Jenna Benner, were all smiles and cherishing the moment.

"The first one was really nerve-wracking," said Woolard of the state title matchup with Grayville. "I was scared because we wanted to beat them in two games. Every time we play them we always have to go to three games. When we got down I was like, "Oh my gosh." But I just knew as the captain, that I had to bring my team back up." Woolard can now move on to high school with four state medals in her collection.

Benner, who also has four medals, was all smiles clutching her most recent medal Saturday night. This medal might have a little more meaning than the rest as Benner noted. "Yes," she said, "Because it is my last game as a junior high player." Benner will also move on to high school volleyball next season.

Woolard added her favorite memory was "hugging coach at the end....saying that she won this one for me. That's when I started tearing up. I got really teared-up," said the now-smiling Woolard.

Hartem ends the 2018 season with a 25-3 record. The three losses this season came at the hands of Illini Central (two sets), Decatur Our Lady of Lourdes (two sets) and Grayville (three sets).

It's worth noting that Coach Hayes and her Stags did manage to avenge all three of those losses. In fact, the Stags had been handed their first loss of the season by Our Lady of Lourdes. But they avenged that loss with sectional title win just a week ago.

The Stags then fell to Illini Central for their second loss of the regular season. Hartem faced Illini Central in the Mount Pulaski eighth Grade Tournament in January and held on for the 25-21 and 28-26 win.

Following the third loss of the season, which came at the hands of Grayville in the Effingham Tournament in February, the Stags had a mission to complete if faced with the task again. This time they squeaked by Grayville in the state title game. It's safe to say the Stags know how to win when it really counts. That trifecta is complete.

Following the championship win in Assumption, the Stags then had to make the long journey home. Approximately an hour and twenty minutes later, the first stop was in Emden, where the girls got off the bus and climbed onto the firetruck waiting outside the firehouse. With blankets in tow, the team boarded the top of the firetruck and huddled together closely, to make a victory lap around town.

The fire truck was followed by dozens of vehicles, all honking their horns as the trip around the outskirts of Emden was made.

 

8th Grade State Champs flashing a 7 for the number of consecutive state titles

After a victory lap in Emden the girls loaded the bus again for Hartsburg. Same thing in this little community. A firetruck was waiting for the girls to climb aboard in the high school parking lot. A lap around town was next, as horns honked and people flashed their porch lights. A small town tradition continues. The only thing that changes is the kids grow up.

Moments later and a few cold fingers, the Stags were getting off the firetruck and heading into the considerably warmer gymnasium. The gym was already set up with benches for the players and a podium for Coach Hayes. The H-E staff is very familiar with the setup. Coach Hayes spoke and was a bit emotional this time around.

Seated in front of her were many fans and also her family. She noted that husband Aaron had made a quick trip back from Chicago to make the ceremony and sons, Alec and Austin were there for support as well. She made mention of the busy family lifestyle, as daughter Anna was apparently off playing club volleyball and not able to make the day's events. But the veteran coach was again just very appreciative of the support and here is what she told the crowd:

"It's been a great week. It's been a great season. For my eighth graders, it's been a great four years. I can't believe how quick it goes. I wish them nothing but the best," she said, getting just a bit more emotional. "If you are gonna end it, this a great way to do it. Also like I said, eighth grade is a lot harder than it was seventh grade and we proved to be up for the challenge. Anybody that actually got to be there for the championship game knew that it could have went either way.

"Grayville is a great program with a couple great coaches. A class act. I was really happy to be in their presence and happy to get a chance to show what Hartsburg-Emden is all about. We impressed a lot of people.

"My girls did a great job tonight. I thought everybody did the job that they had intended to do. They came out and played as a team and showed them what it was to be a state champion. Not once, not twice, but seven times."

Turning to her girls seated behind her she said, "Congratulations!"

Coach Hayes was then presented a gift by her team. She opened a freshly-designed orange towel that Bob Perschall had made and it displayed both the seventh and eighth grade state championship team pictures on it. A very nice gift.

Later on, Coach Hayes would explain that Perschall had made towels for all the girls at Hayes' request earlier. "He just got a new machine that can do the pictures," said Hayes.

The towels were designed with each players' name and number, according to Hayes. The seventh grade towels read "State Bound No Sweat" and the eighth grade towels read "Wipe Up the Competition."

"So he must have had one left over and he made that for me. Isn't that fantastic?" asked the coach, "Good stuff there."

Yes, Coach, good stuff here.

One final note: So what does this woman do for an encore? How about throw some glitter in the air? Just give me a reason to explain. I can try. No secrets.

While the Stags got their revenge, who knew Jennifer Hayes was a fan of P!nk? Hayes treated her daughter, Anna, to a P!nk concert on Wednesday night in St. Louis and on Saturday night the topic just had to be discussed. Hayes is a fan...a big fan. She admires how P!nk was able to break the mold of what others wanted her to be and just did her own thing.

And look how successful P!nk has been being true to herself, Hayes noted.

Hayes has been influencing the lives of young women now for 25 years on and off the volleyball court and for that I say, "Raise your glass" to Coach Hayes. Congratulations and thank you, Coach Hayes!

Friday opening round stats versus Monmouth ICS (ends the season 22-1)

Hartem wins 25-15 and 25-14

Kills:

Barry 19
Benner 2
Crabtree 1
O'Donoghue 1

Points:

O'Donoghue 17
Beekman 6
Woolard 3
Barry 3
Montgomery 2
Crabtree 2
Benner 1

Blocks:

Barry 2

Assists:

Woolard 15
Beekman 6
Crabtree 2

Digs:

O'Donoghue 9
Barry 6
Montgomery 5
Crabtree 3
Beekman 2
Benner 1

Saturday semifinal stats versus Thornton Wolcott (14-1 after this game)

Hartem wins 25-12 and 25-10

Points:

O'Donoghue 12
Crabtree 9
Beekman 6
Barry 5
Woolard 4
Benner 1

Kills:

Barry 13
Crabtree 4
Benner 2

Assists:

Woolard 14
Beekman 5

Digs:

O'Donoghue 5
Benner 4
Barry 3
Montgomery 1
Beekman 1
Crabtree 1

Saturday championship stats versus Grayville (finished the season 26-2)

Hartem wins 25-23 and 25-23

Points:

Beekman 7
Crabtree 4
Montgomery 4
Woolard 3
Barry 3
O'Donoghue 2

Kills:

Barry 27
Beekman 1
O'Donoghue 1
Benner 1

Blocks:

Barry 2
O'Donoghue 1

Assists:

Beekman 15
Woolard 13

Digs:

Barry 10
Montgomery 3
Crabtree 3
Beekman 1
Woolard 1
O'Donoghue 1

Final standings of 2018 eighth Grade Class 1A State Tournament:

1st Hartem
2nd Grayville
3rd Pontiac St. Mary's
4th Thornton Wolcott

Champions from each class for 2018:

1A Hartem (25-3)
2A Champaign St. Matthew (26-1)
3A Eureka (27-0)
4A Rochester (23-3)

[Teena Lowery]