Junior Kirsten Bomholt had 20 kills as Versailles improved to 10-12 overall.
Northeastern finished 21-4.
“They wanted it and our girls wanted it at the end there and it just didn’t come out on our side,” Northeastern coach McKenzie Shore said.
The Tigers jumped out to a quick 17-9 lead in the first game and held on for a 25-22 victory. It was key to get out to a fast start after not playing to their potential in the first two rounds, said Versailles coach Kenzie Bruggeman.
“It’s not just going to magically happen,” she said. “They have great athletes on the other side and if they got some of that momentum, they’re going to take off. It was really important (to start fast).”
The Tigers took a 14-8 lead in the second game, forcing a Northeastern timeout. The Jets were never able to recover, falling 25-15.
“We had a couple nice runs and we had a couple bad runs that hurt us in the long run,” Shore said. “Getting on those long losing streaks, losing a point back-to-back-to-back, it kills you. Obviously they get momentum and we lose momentum and it’s hard to get that back up when you’re down seven, eight points.”
The Jets grabbed the momentum in the third game, taking an 18-17 lead on back-to-back blocks by junior Paige Heammerle. The Tigers tied the at 21-all, but an ace by senior Gabby Thaxton and a kill by junior Reese Donaldson gave Northeastern a 25-21 victory.
In the fourth game, Northeastern jumped out to a 14-6 lead on an ace by senior Samantha Wiseman, but the Tigers went on a 14-7 run, taking a 21-20 lead on back-to-back aces by junior Brynn Briscoe. They sealed the victory on Bomholt’s 20th kill in the match.
“She was just unstoppable,” Shore said. “We couldn’t put a block on her. She was jumping over our blocks, hitting between our blocks when we weren’t closing. She’s very good.”
Versailles advanced to face Clermont Northeastern in a D-III district final match at 10 a.m. Saturday at Northmont High School.
The Jets won their third straight Ohio Heritage Conference North Division title. The program also won 20 or more matches for the third year in a row.
“I’m proud of them,” Shore said. “I’ll always be proud of them. They could’ve lost in the first round and I would’ve been proud. They won the OHC and that was our first goal. Sometimes goals get cut short, but that doesn’t take away from our season.”
The Jets will graduate six seniors -- Thaxton, Carolyn Harrington, Madison Grimm, Brennan Patterson, Samatha Wiseman and Elizabeth Wiseman. The class went 80-15 during their high school careers.
“My juniors have big shoes to fill,” Shore said. “We’re definitely going to miss them and it’s not going to be the same, but you’ve got to look forward.”
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