Notre Dame’s Addi Brockway, shown earlier this season, delivered as her team earned a sweep over WACO on Monday night.
Craig Sesker - The Hawk Eye
The Notre Dame volleyball team was out of sync.
And out of sorts.
Then Addi Brockway took over.
The Nike junior was a dominant force at the net, powering her team to a sweep over WACO in a Class 1A Region 2 first round match.
Notre Dame trailed late in the first set before prevailing 25-22, 25-14, 25-17 on Monday night at Father Minett Gymnasium.
"WACO came out fired up, and I don't think we were mentally ready or focused to start the match," Brockway said. "We just had to kick it into gear. Once we got going, we played pretty well."
Notre Dame improved to 24-13 overall and advances to face Wapello (17-11) in a regional quarterfinal on Wednesday at home.
"Give WACO credit, they came out strong," Notre Dame coach Susan Reid said. "They didn't want their season to end, and I think they played a little bit looser as an underdog.
"We just had to settle down and play our game. We needed that spark and that energy. Someone had to provide that spark, and that's what Addi did."
An 8-18 WACO team charged out strong, leading 19-15 late in the opening set.
That's when Brockway flexed her muscle. She delivered a handful of booming right-handed spikes as Notre Dame rallied to win the set.
"Once the adrenaline got going, I was able to make some plays to help the team," Brockway said. "We finally had the momentum going our way and it worked out for us."
Brockway's spikes, coupled with the superb serving of senior Maddy Knapp, sent the Nikes on an 8-0 run late in the first set.
"Addi had quite a night," Reid said. "She does play cool, calm and collected. She was seeing the court well and wasn't overswinging. She was just finding open spots."
Notre Dame then maintained command in rolling to wins in the final two sets against a scrappy Warrior team.
The 5-foot-10 Brockway finished with 17 kills and seven digs.
Knapp contributed 10 kills, 25 digs, three blocks and was 21-of-21 serving with four aces.
Freshman setter Emma Elmore dished out 41 assists for the Nikes.
Notre Dame's McKenna Kipp had nine kills and Chloe Wenzel seven.
Mallory Lillie had 11 digs and Addison Reid seven for the Nikes.
Notre Dame now prepares to face a Wapello team it is plenty familiar with.
The Nikes have played the Arrows four times this season, winning three of the matchups.
"It should be a good match," Brockway said. "They play good defense. We just have to play to our strengths and come out more focused than we did tonight."
Reid knows it will be a challenge facing Wapello again.
"They are a good team," the coach said. "They are good defensively and they have some strong hitters. It's the postseason and everybody is going to give it their best.
"We are a team that has to be mentally prepared before a game. We need to be ready to go against Wapello."