NORTHLAND SPORTS NOTES: Volleyball, boys soccer, cross country

Source: The Star

ANDY LUNDBERG | Special to The Star

Kaylee Marquardt of Liberty received a serve on Saturday during the Blue Jays’ Missouri Class 4 state quarterfinal match against Blue Springs.

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St. Pius X volleyball coach Rosacarla Salanoa noticed her team was a little uptight before its Class 3 sectional match against Excelsior Springs on Saturday.

So in an effort to get them to relax, she told them something she thought they needed to hear.

“I told them that getting to state didn’t have to do with their skills,” Salanoan said. “It had to do with how bad they wanted it.”

Shortly thereafter, Salanoa said, senior Anamarie Tarantino spoke up and said to her teammates that they had to play with their hearts.

And they did, using that emotion to beat Excelsior Springs 2-1 (23-25, 27-25, 25-21) to force a quarterfinal showdown against O’Hara later in the day. And when the Warriors took the first game against O’Hara in thrilling fashion_the score was 25-23_Salanoa believed her team could take one more game from the Celtics and advance to the semifinals.

“The girls were very focused,” said Salanoa, whose team had already lost to the Celtics twice this season. “I thought the day would come when we’d finally beat O’Hara.”

Alas, it was not meant to be, as O’Hara went on to win the next two games 25-12 and eliminate the Warriors from the playoffs.

However, that doesn’t keep Salanoa_whose team finishes with a 27-6-1 record_from being proud of her squad.

“As a coach, it’s tough because I know they could have gone farther than they did,” Salanoa said. “But on the other hand, I’m happy for them because they ended their season feeling successful.”

Liberty lost to Blue Springs in the Class 4 quarterfinals on Saturday 2-0 (27-25, 25-10).

BOYS SOCCERGet ready for round four.

When Park Hill’s and Park Hill South’s boys soccer teams meet today in the Class 3, District 16 championship game at Park Hill District Soccer Complex, it will be the fourth time this season the two rivals have faced each other.

And at least this season, the stakes have never been higher. The winner will move on to sectionals, while the loser goes home. Sounds fun, right?

And if past history is any indication, either team can win tonight’s game. Park Hill, 21-5, won the first two times they met this season, including a 1-0 victory over the Panthers in the championship game of Park Hill South Panther Classic on October 10th. However, Park Hill South beat Park Hill 4-0 the last time met in a game that ultimately led to both teams sharing the Suburban Big Six title with 9-1 conference records.

“We thought we played pretty well against them in the first two games, we just didn’t get the result we wanted,” said Park Hill South coach Joe Toigo.

Toigo, whose team is 15-7, said he expects a close, competitive game.

“Park Hill was identified as one of the teams to beat earlier in the year, so their kids are dialed in,” he said. “They have a goal to get to state and they beat Rockhurst last week, so that’s just another feather in their cap. They’ll be ready to get it done.”

The game starts at 6 p.m.

CROSS COUNTRYA number of Northland cross country teams performed well at districts last weekend.

•Staley’s boys won Class 3 District 8 with a score of 45. The Falcons were led by Huns Pitia, who finished fourth with a time of 17:31, and two other runners (Michael McCulloch and Nate Harmon) who also finished in the top 10.

Meanwhile, Kearney’s girls won the same district with a score of 32. Kearney was led by Jasmine Edwards, who finished second with a time of 20:12, and three other runners (Sami Berry, Angel Gannon, Jessica Breyfogle) who also finished in the top 10.

•Liberty’s boys finished second in the Class 4 Section 4 sectional on Saturday at Longview Community College. The Blue Jays finished with a score of 42 points, 10 behind first-place Lee’s Summit North. Cody Troy Smith finished third for the Blue Jays, while Hossam Hassan took seventh and Matt Armstrong took eighth.

•Liberty’s Megan Yohe was the highest local finisher at the same sectional on the girls’ side, taking third.

•St. Pius X’s boys finished second in the Class 2 District 8 at Richmond with a score of 63 points, just five behind first-place Pembroke Hill. The Warriors were led by David Stodden, who finished second with a time of 17:47, and Drew Keefer, who finished third with a time of 17:59. Michael Anderson, who finished ninth with a time of 19:05, also qualified for the Class 2 state meet, which takes place on Saturday at the Oak Hills Golf Center in Jefferson City.

The St. Pius girls also turned in a solid performance, finishing third and qualifying three girls for state. Murphy said Hilary Torres, who finished eighth, became the first girl in school history to qualify for state four years in a row. Randi Toyne finished 10th and Julia Winkler 12th.

submitted by TEREZ A. PAYLOR - 2009-11-03 14:05:01