ROGERSVILLE, Mo. - With their first-ever trip to the volleyball Final Four on the line, the Helias Lady Crusaders decided Saturday they didn't need any more drama than they already had.
The Lady Crusaders put together a pair of commanding victories in the Class 3 sectional and quarterfinal rounds to earn a trip to Cape Girardeau for the Final Four set for Friday and Saturday.
Helias coach David Harris said the best part of Saturday was watching the reactions.
"Really, I am most enjoying watching all the players celebrate," he said moments after the match. "They have put in a lot of work over the years. All of these girls got better in the offseason and they've been on a mission all summer and into the start of practice."
Helias started the day with a 25-19, 25-12 win in the sectional round against an Aurora team that came in with a record of 23-10-1.
The Lady Crusaders followed that up with a 25-10, 25-15 dismantling of the host school, Logan-Rogersville, which was 35-1 before playing Helias.
"To beat a very, very good (Logan-Rogersville) team the way we beat them, I would have never thought those would be the scores," Harris said. "Serving, blocking, defense, hitting - everything was outstanding.
"We've had a problem not just this year, but several years, of letting large leads disappear. But the girls kept the pedal to the metal."
The Lady Crusaders (39-0-1) will join St. Pius X: Festus (32-5-1), Villa Duchesne (29-8-2) and St. Pius X: Kansas City at the Show-Me Center for round-robin play Friday at 3, 5 and 7 p.m. The teams with the best results will play for the title at 6 p.m. Saturday, while the third-place match will be held at noon.
"This has been their goal and I really felt this was an attainable goal," Harris said. "But to be undefeated going to the Final Four is totally unexpected. Still, the possibility of going was a realistic goal and they were willing to do what was necessary to get there."