JEROMESVILLE – It makes perfect sense that the Hillsdale volleyball team has stretched its season beyond last weekend’s daylight saving time protocol and into November.
Headed into a regional semifinal against Lake Center Christian, the Falcons have turned back the clocks 50 years.
It was 1976 the last time Hillsdale found itself in this position, somewhere around the election of former president Jimmy Carter.
The 21st-century version of a district championship for the Falcons came last Wednesday, when the squad survived a five-set Division VI doozy against Wayne County Athletic League rival Waynedale.
It was the second consecutive year the programs met for the district crown and battled through five sets, but this time it was Hillsdale surviving, 25-23, 25-22, 17-25, 13-25, 18-16.
“We both really do a good job of preparing for one another,” fourth-year Falcons coach Matti Willeke said. “They were hugging after the game, and obviously Waynedale didn’t want to lose, but it was wild how those (district championship matches) mirrored each other.
“We talk a lot about how we can practice composure under pressure. Beating Waynedale just gives us more confidence, and I think the experience that we’re taking forward is, ‘OK, we know how to stay composed and we’ve seen it executed and have gotten the benefit of the win.’”
The reward for the Falcons (20-5) is a spot in the Sweet 16 at 8 p.m. Thursday against Lake Center Christian (15-10) at Uniontown Lake High School.
They will follow the region’s other semifinal between WCAL champion Dalton (24-1, ranked fifth in Division VI) and Independence (18-7).
Featuring the leadership of six seniors and an overall group that has set a variety of program records, Willeke and Hillsdale carry a swagger that just a few months ago had not existed on the volleyball court for the Falcons.
“We really feel confident about our play and our mentality,” the coach said.
“We try to make it really simple when we’re in those stressful situations. It’s just: Ball in play, ball up, make (the opposition) make the errors and when we have a good chance to make an attack, let’s do that.”
Hillsdale has proven it has the horses to keep pushing this season ahead.
Senior Jillian Cowger, a 5-foot-11 hitter committed to play at Marietta University, now has school records for single-season kills (354) and career kills (951). Her 73 blocks this season lead the WCAL and she clinched the district championship match with an ace.
Another senior and four-year starter, Kiki McFadden has been a shining star at outside hitter, ranked behind only Cowger in HHS history in career kills (940).
Her school-record 493 digs this season rank fifth in Division VI, according to MaxPreps, and she’s got additional career records at Hillsdale for digs (exactly 1,000) and aces (156).
The Falcon senior class also boasts libero Gracie Bishop, whose 376 digs this year trail only McFadden’s numbers for the most in program history.
Senior outside hitter Jordyn Fickes, another four-year starter, features balanced career totals in kills (741), digs (614) and aces (91), and she should clear 200 kills and 200 digs for the season Thursday night.
Meanwhile, sophomore setter Emily Smith has captured a Hillsdale record this year in assists with 765 (seventh-most in Division VI) and needs just two more for 1,000 in her young career.
She adds 222 digs and 47 aces this season, and sophomore libero Macy Ritchey has chipped in 240 digs as well.
It’s a Falcons team that finished third in the talented WCAL with a 10-4 league mark – their highest placement in the conference in at least two decades.
Willeke said Hillsdale’s tight, 3-2 loss at Dalton on Oct. 6 was a huge confidence-booster in a season of confidence-boosting moments.
“The Wayne County League, just every game, teams show up,” she said. “And we knew teams were coming for us, too, because we were making a good run in the first half of our season.
“When we took Dalton to five, that was incredible, and we were just bitter walking out of there not getting the win.”
It was a league gauntlet that helped the Falcons get to this moment – a matchup with a solid Lake Center Christian squad that also isn’t used to the regional scene.
The Tigers knocked off 10th-ranked Kirtland (22-3) in five sets for the district crown, winning the fifth by a 19-17 count. LCC also swept McDonald (16-8) in the district semifinals after losing to the Blue Devils in the regular season.
Lake Center is 12-4 since starting the season just 3-6.
Willeke said LCC features some good height and a younger core of players. She said the Falcons have been trying to gameplan around 6-foot junior middle hitter Lilly Kane (958 career kills) and her 6-1 freshman sister, outside hitter Adella Kane.
Lilly was named Stark County’s Division VI Offensive Player of the Year last season as just a sophomore.
“If we stay composed and bring a strong attack, I think we can expose some of their weaker areas,” Willeke said. “I’m hoping our experience comes through, too, because they’re a little bit younger of a team.”
We really feel confident about our play and our mentality.
Hillsdale volleyball coach Matti willeke
The Tigers could have somewhat of a home-court advantage, as they have less than a 10-minute drive to Lake High School, compared to Hillsdale’s 70-minute travel time.
But Willeke said she likes that the Falcons will be able to get to the gym, relax and absorb the surroundings while watching the Dalton-Independence pairing in the early match.
“The talk is for us to play like we’re going up against Dalton,” she said. “We played our best game against Dalton, so that gives us a fire to (potentially see the Bulldogs again in the regional championship). … We’re focused on this Lake Center team, but with the (mindset that) we would love to see Dalton again.”
If that rematch were to happen, it would be 3 p.m. Saturday at Barberton High School.
Dalton has not lost a single set since it narrowly beat Hillsdale in five, 15-25, 25-21, 18-25, 25-12, 18-16.
A day before that scuffle with the Falcons in early October, the Bulldogs suffered their only loss this season to Marlington, 3-2. Those are the only two matches that have seen Dalton get stretched to five sets this entire season; throw out those two, and the Bulldogs have won 67 of 71 sets in 2026.
But before that potential WCAL Elite Eight pairing, both Dalton and Hillsdale have to take care of business Thursday night.
Ironically, the match with Lake Center will be the 100th as a head coach for Willeke (55-44 at Hillsdale).
Asked what her reaction would have been four years ago if she were told she would have 55 wins and her Falcons would be in the regional tournament at this point, the coach just laughed.
“I think it would have been overwhelming; I would have been like, ‘I have no idea how to do that! How do I get there?’” Willeke said.
“To be here is pretty incredible and these girls are awesome. They’ve worked their butts off and it’s fun to see them just get to where they’ve gotten.”
