Joseph Case volleyball advances to the Elite 8 after sweeping Sandwich

Steven Sanchez, The Herald News
·4 min read

SWANSEA — Loagan Brown stands a mere 5 feet tall.

On Wednesday night, the Case senior volleyball captain played a lot "taller," which caught visiting Sandwich by surprise.

"I am vertically challenged so I'm not usually up there," Brown smiled. "It felt good. It has been getting better lately."

Brown set the tone early for third seeded Cardinals with a kill shot over the taller Blue Knights to help ignite Case to a 3-0 win over 14th seed Sandwich in a Division IV Round of 16 matchup before a large crowd at Joseph Case High School.

With the win, the Cardinals (21-1) advance to the Elite 8 and will host Ursuline Academy on Friday at 6 p.m. Case almost reached the Elite 8 last season before losing in the Round of 16 to Rockland.

Case senior captain Loagan Brown hits a kill shot for a winner during Wednesday's Division IV Round of 16 contest against Sandwich at Joseph Case High School. The Cardinals won 3-0.
Case senior captain Loagan Brown hits a kill shot for a winner during Wednesday's Division IV Round of 16 contest against Sandwich at Joseph Case High School. The Cardinals won 3-0.

"I think serving is one of our biggest strength," Cardinals head coach Brendan Kelly said. "I thought Loagan [Brown] set the tone right away in the first play of the game. She goes up against their big and busts it right through them. Gyms don't play games, but we do a nice job here. It's a good feeling. They're working hard and they're a great group of girls."

Case won the first set, 25-13 then the second set 25-18 before closing it out with a 25-9 decision in the third set.

Brown ended the night with seven kill shots and 11 digs. Teammate Hannah Storm said she has all the confidence in the world with Brown's ability at the net.

VOTE:Who is the Herald News High School Athlete of the Week for Nov. 1-6

"Loagan, I felt so confident of her hitting the ball over the block and she always get those back corner shots," said Storm who finished with a team-high 15 kill shots and 11 digs.

Senior captain Olivia Silva was once again outstanding, distributing the ball to teammates. She finished the night with a game-high 33 assists from the setter spot and even collected four kill shots.

Case's Hannah Storm, right, hits the kill shot toward Sandwich's Grace Loewen.
Case's Hannah Storm, right, hits the kill shot toward Sandwich's Grace Loewen.

"I'm excited," Silva said. "I thought the team played great today. That was the best we've played as a team in a while. All of our hitters were swinging and we got some of our subs in too."

Other contributors for Case were Ava Silva with six kill shots and Jamie Moniz finished with five kill shots. Bench players — freshman Madilyn Botelho and senior Izzy Salpietro — got into the fun with loud kills on passes from Silva.

"Olivia's leadership is through the roof," Kelly said. "She is leading us right now and making sure everybody gets touches and spreading the ball around. It is really another level I've seen her play."

Sandwich (11-10) won its first seven games before dropping seven of the last 10. Blue Knight head coach Giulia Jordan said the anxiety and nerves were too much to overcome.

"Tough game," said Jordan. "Defensively, we lacked a lot especially in the back row. Case is so great and so good. They're very strong up front and has good defense."

How it happened

With Silva serving, the Cardinals jumped out to a quick 6-1 lead in the first set. Three kill shots by Storm increased the margin to 12-3 before Sandwich called a time out. Case came back six straight points before the Blue Knights inched closer at 20-11. But the Cardinals answered with a 5-2 run which ended on a Ava Silva kill shot.

In the second set, Sandwich kept things close despite Case jumping out to a 9-3 lead. Junior middle hitter Alanna Schreibeis contributed several key kill shots and blocks to help chopped the lead to 9-7.

Case's Jamie Moniz goes up high for a kill shot.
Case's Jamie Moniz goes up high for a kill shot.

Silva's kill shot capped a 7-1 run that gave the Cardinals some breathing room at 15-8. The Blue Knights pulled to within 20-15 but Brown ended all hopes for a comeback with a kill shot for the victory.

Silva ran off 14 consecutive service points before Sandwich mustered a point. Led by Storm and Moniz, Case managed to open its lead to 20-5. Moniz iced the game with a loud kill to give the Cardinals the victory.

Herald News and Taunton Daily Gazette sports editor Steven Sanchez can be reached at ssanchez@heraldnews.com. You can follow him on Twitter at @Chezsports. Support local journalism by purchasing a digital or print subscription to The Herald News today.

This article originally appeared on The Herald News: Girls volleyball: Case wins three straight sets against Sandwich