Addie Lampe follows in footsteps of new coach to help Mater Dei slip past Columbia

STAUNTON — Addie Lampe gets plenty of special attention in practice.

That's because the Mater Dei senior libero happens to play the same position as first-year coach Cortney Walker.

"I hound her," Walker said. "She gets it from me all the time."

That extra attention paid off big time on Thursday.

Lampe led a stellar defensive effort that propelled Mater Dei to a 27-25, 25-16 win over Columbia in the Class 2A Staunton Sectional championship volleyball match at Staunton High.

The defending state champion Knights (34-3) will face Quincy Notre Dame (36-2) in the Pana Supersectional at 6 p.m. on Monday.

Walker, a 2009 Mater Dei grad, helped the Knights to a third-place finish at state her senior season. She knows the ins-and-out of the position and has helped Lampe grow her game.

"She's one of the best libero's to go through Mater Dei," Lampe said.

Walker recorded 422 digs her senior campaign.

The 5-foot-5-inch Lampe leads the team with 329 digs after a nine-dig effort on Thursday.

Lampe may be a defensive wizard, but she came up with one of the biggest offensive plays of the night against a scrappy Columbia group that ends the season with a 31-7 mark.

She ended a back-and-forth opening set with a well-placed, off-speed shot that happened to find a rare open spot on the court.

"I saw that ball coming over the net and I knew I had to get the ball up," Lampe said. "I didn't know if it was going to go over and score or not."

Walker says Lampe plays the same style of game that she did in her playing days.

"She's willing to sacrifice her body for us day-and-day-out," Walker said.

Mater Dei senior slugger Ella Diercks snapped the 25-all tie with a thunderous kill that set the stage for Lampe's set-ending play.

"That was amazing," Diercks said of Lampe's effort. "She definitely had the grit and the will to win and it definitely showed on the court."

Mater Dei was able to dig out numerous hits by the Eagles front-line. Sophomore defensive specialist Ava Lampe, Addie little sister, came up huge throughout the contest.

"It took us a while, but we finally realized that this is a sectional championship and we better put it in gear," Diercks said.

Columbia matched Mater Dei point for point in an opening set that featured nine ties with no team leading by more than four points.

Diercks got her team back on track with a kill that snapped a run of four points by the Eagles. The drive brought the Breese-based school to within 17-15. Junior Lauren Jamruk followed with an ace to set the tone for thrilling finish.

Columbia sophomore Claire Sandstrom drove home a point to put her team up 24-23. Diercks responded with a tip to stave off set point.

"I could not have asked for anything more from my girls in that first (set)," Columbia coach Kelly Landgraf said. "It was super-hard to bounce back after you've fought that hard."

The Knights, behind a balanced attack led by Diercks and Alyssa Koerkenmeier, took control in the second set with a 13-4 closing blitz.

Addie Lampe caught fire at the service line and Avery Wuebbels added a pair of big kills. Avery Patton also scored twice during the run.

"We just kept fighting," said Diercks, who will continue her career at Truman State University in Kirksville, Missouri.

The Knights have thoroughly enjoyed their run as defending state champs and are anxious the claim the ninth state title in school history over the next few weeks.

"This year's team is just as strong (as last year's), Diercks said. "So we expect to win it again."

High school sports reporter