BURTON—An 11th seed entering the postseason, Independence Volleyball is headed to the Sweet 16.
The Blue Devils continued their postseason run Wednesday night with a 25-14, 25-20, 25-15 sweep of second-seeded Mineral Ridge Volleyball in the Division VI Northeast 3 district championship match at Berkshire High School.
Independence claimed the district title under first-year head coach Hallie Teribery, whose young squad has continued to mature throughout the tournament despite relying on three freshmen in its regular rotation.
“For having such a limited-experience team for a playoff run, I’m just day-to-day so impressed with their ability to remain composed,” Teribery said. “We have three freshmen that consistently play in our rotation, and their ability to remain composed and confident is great.”
That composure, Teribery said, has been strengthened by the leadership of the Blue Devils’ veteran players.
“I think that all trickles down from what our older girls were able to do, and bring them along to make this moment not feel as big and scary because they knew they could rely on their teammates,” she said.
Independence wasted little time establishing control in the opening set.
The Blue Devils raced to a 15-8 advantage behind a strong offensive start from Emily Slusher, who recorded five kills and a block in the set.
Independence maintained its advantage and closed out a 25-14 victory to take a 1-0 lead in the match.
Mineral Ridge responded with a stronger effort in the second set.
Behind two kills each from Malayna Wilson and Arionna Kays, the Rams built a 13-7 lead and appeared poised to even the match.
The Blue Devils had other plans.
Independence chipped away at the deficit, eventually drawing even at 14-14. Neither team could establish separation as the set progressed, and the two sides remained deadlocked at 20-20.
With the set hanging in the balance, Independence delivered its best stretch of volleyball.
Chloe Johnson, Alexis Behm, and Mia Mudra came through with critical kills before Julia Jurkiewicz finished the rally with consecutive service aces, completing a five-point run that secured a 25-20 victory and a commanding 2-0 match advantage.
Freshman Violet Jacob provided a major spark in the comeback, finishing the second set with four kills and two blocks.
Teribery praised Jacob‘s confidence and willingness to attack in one of the biggest matches of the season.
“It was just the fearlessness and the confidence that she has built and been able to establish from her teammates, giving her that love and support,” Teribery said. “She was on fire. I cannot wait to see her stats.”
Jacob’s emergence gave Independence another offensive weapon and prevented Mineral Ridge from focusing exclusively on the Blue Devils’ outside hitters.
“She was hitting right through the seam, and hitting the hard cross,” Teribery said. “With our tempo, she sometimes barely even had a block up. It was so fun and beautiful to watch, and I’m so lucky that I get her for another three years.”
The additional production in the middle opened opportunities for Independence’s more experienced attackers, who capitalized on the Rams’ defensive adjustments.
“I think we kind of knew early on we knew who our go-to girls are, which are both of our pin hitters,” Teribery said. “After we mixed it up a little bit with finding Violet, their middle block was biting, and that gave us a great opportunity to run our outsides and for them to just find the court.”
The Blue Devils also found success attacking different areas of the court.
“Mineral Ridge’s defense switches up a lot, and we went hard cross-line, found a high six through the seam, and found our stride,” Teribery said. “It was really fun to see.”
The second-set comeback proved to be the turning point.
With momentum firmly on their side and a district championship within reach, the Blue Devils dominated the early stages of the third set.
Independence surged to an 18-7 lead, leaving Mineral Ridge with little opportunity to mount another comeback.
Mudra delivered the final blow with a kill that sealed a 25-15 victory, setting off a district championship celebration for the Blue Devils.
Teribery credited her team’s ability to finish sets without allowing mistakes or pressure to interfere with its execution.
“We have worked and focused a lot on once it’s in that 20-point area, we’ve got to keep it clean for those next five points and not create silly mistakes or errors, and continue to trust ourselves,” she said. “That was a big conversation that we’ve had, and being able to just feel the feels, and be able to perform.”
The Blue Devils also benefited from aggressive serving that repeatedly disrupted Mineral Ridge’s offensive rhythm.
“We’re allowed to feel pressure and still perform while feeling it in a match,” Teribery said. “And they just did a good job of staying consistent. We worked hard on low, flat, deep serves, and I think we served aggressively and got them out of the system. All the pieces just kind of came together at the right time for us.”
Independence’s offensive balance was reflected in the final statistics.
Mudra and Slusher combined for 24 kills, four blocks, and four service points to lead the Blue Devils’ attack.
Jacob added 11 kills and three blocks, while Behm and Johnson contributed five kills and two blocks apiece.
Jurkiewicz directed the offense with 21 assists and four service aces, while Hailey Pflug finished with 16 assists and two aces.
The production throughout the lineup demonstrated the growth of a young Independence team that has found its stride at the most important point of the season.
Now, the Blue Devils have an opportunity to extend their postseason run even further.
Independence advances to face Dalton Volleyball in the Division VI Region 21 semifinal on Thursday, Nov. 5, at 6 p.m. at Uniontown Lake High School.
A victory would send the Blue Devils to the regional championship and move them one step closer to the state tournament.
For a team that entered the postseason seeded 11th, the district championship has already demonstrated how far the Blue Devils have come under their first-year head coach.
And they’re not finished yet.
Volleyball Match Result
| Team | Score |
|---|---|
 Independence Blue Devils | 3 |
 Mineral Ridge | 0 |
Top Performers
Independence
Player Stats
Independence
| Player | K | D | A | Aces |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hailey Pflug | 0 | 5 | 14 | 2 |
| Peyton Bechlem | 0 | 7 | 6 | 1 |
| Mia Mudra | 11 | 7 | 0 | 2 |
| Alyssa Gangale | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Julia Jurkiewicz | 0 | 7 | 19 | 3 |
| Chloe Johnson | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Emily Slusher | 11 | 4 | 0 | 3 |
| Zara Toth | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Violet Jacob | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Alexis Behm | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Game Notes
Updated automatically through this result and the latest reported player stats.
