Jacob Finley, wearing No. 5, keeps Marist alive to avoid state quarterfinal upset. His reaction? ‘We've got this.'
Why was senior setter Jacob Finley wearing No. 5 for Marist and why was the public-address announcer calling him Wyatt Olszewski during Friday's state quarterfinals?
Shortly before the match, the RedHawks changed uniforms because Illinois High School Association officials said their numbers were too hard to read. Some players found theirs in alternate gray uniforms. Finley, who usually wears No. 12, ended up with Olszewski's jersey.
But Finley wasn't paying attention to the announcer.
'I was really zoned in,' he said. 'I zoned out the crowd and focused on the court and my teammates.'
Marist was out of its comfort zone for a little while, but after losing its first set to an Illinois team all season, the RedHawks recovered and pulled off a 17-25, 25-14, 25-21 win over Lake Park at Hoffman Estates.
Ohio State-bound Christian Teresi paced Marist (38-2) with 15 kills and 13 assists. MIT recruit Nathen Toth tallied six kills and Finley added 12 assists.
That put the defending state champion RedHawks into an 11 a.m. Saturday semifinal against Lane Tech (34-6), which earned a 25-21, 21-25, 25-18 win over Wheaton-Warrenville South (32-8) .
Finley, who will be heading to South Alabama for college, is giving up competitive volleyball.
Even though the Redhawks struggled mightily in the first game, Finley remained confident that his high school career wasn't coming to an end Friday.
'I knew we could come back — we've done it before in California,' Finley said, referring to a trip the RedHawks made in April. 'When we started off the second set hot, I was like, 'We got this.'''
Sandburg was hoping to put a second Southland team into the semifinals but dropped a 25-23, 25-23 decision to O'Fallon in a match that featured 31 ties and eight lead changes.
Sacred Heart recruit JT Snider totaled seven kills, Princeton commit Jeremiah Aro followed with six and Easton Donausky notched 19 assists for the Eagles (36-5), who were making their first quarterfinal appearance since 2016.
Sutton Massey led the way with nine kills for O'Fallon (32-7), which needed to fend off five match points Tuesday against Lincoln-Way East to win 23-25, 21-29, 25-21 in the sectional final.
Finley, meanwhile, shares setting duties with senior right-side hitter Teresi and the two are clicking.
'He brings a lot to the team in funny ways and serious ways,' Teresi said of Finley. 'We have our ups and downs, but we're at the point where we found our adjustment and it's paying off.'
And it doesn't hurt to have a positive presence on the team.
'Finley is always the loudest in the gym,' Toth said. 'He's always the most positive guy. He's never afraid to admit when he has made a mistake, and he's a glue guy on the court.'
On top of that, Finley puts a lot of energy into practices and games.
'You will never not hear him in our gym,' Marist coach Jordan Vidovic said. 'He gets the most out of what he wants to do. He came up with a huge dig (Friday) and I don't know if we won the point or not, but those are the spark plays and the energy plays and we needed that.
'He brings fun energy and comfort that settles everybody in.'
While Finley said he received offers from other schools, the decision to walk away from volleyball wasn't easy. He confirmed he will miss playing the sport.
'I love the atmosphere with all of the parents and fans going crazy,' Finley said. 'I love my teammates. I love being there, and when we are in the gym together, nothing else matters.
'We work really hard and we are in it together. We all want the same thing, which is what I love.'
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