Springfield Lutheran ends Brown County’s magical season in sectional title match

GREENFIELD, Ill. — The pride poured out in Katie Berens’ tears, hugs and appreciation for everything the Brown County volleyball team accomplished.

Words were a little harder to come by in the wake of a season-ending loss.

“There probably aren’t the right words to describe it,” Berens said after the Hornets lost 22-25, 25-20, 25-13 to Springfield Lutheran on Wednesday night in the Class 1A Greenfield Sectional championship. “We’ve had a heck of a year, and I’m so proud of them. We had a great group of kids.”

The Hornets (31-4) simply ran into a program with a rich volleyball pedigree and a load of talent.

“We gave them a run for their money,” Berens said. “We just couldn’t pull it off in the end.”

An emphatic start by the Hornets had the Crusaders on their heels.

“We came on really strong,” Berens said. “Offensively, we looked great. Our defense was clicking. Everything looked really good.”

Berens said the Crusaders made a couple of offensive adjustments and showcased their prowess.

“They have really, really good outside hitters,” Berens said. “We couldn’t keep up with them. We just weren’t quite clicking in that third game. We just couldn’t quite pull it out.”

Katey Flynn led the Hornets with 10 kills and 14 digs, while Gracie Hedden finished with eight kills and 10 digs and Cortni Law had five kills, four blocks and two aces. Gabby McGath dished out 31 assists and three aces, and Kaci McKeon had 12 digs.

“We talked in the locker room how somebody is going to lose in the end and that doesn’t take away from how amazing our year has been,” Berens said. “It’s never easy to see that after a loss when your season ends. An amazing year overall.”