CLINTON — The winningest class in Uni volleyball history played its final match Tuesday night as the ninth-seeded Illineks fell to No. 7 Clinton 10-25, 11-25 in the first round of the Class 2A Monticello regionals.

Uni finished the season 20-11 overall, 9-3 in the East Central Illinois Conference (good for second place behind powerhouse Decatur Lutheran). Both marks were the best ever in school history.

Seniors Chelsea Freeland, Claire Johnson, Sarah Pfander, Jamie Weiser, Ruth Welch, and Karen Woodley wrapped up their careers with the remarkable distinction of helping their teams set a school record for wins three years in a row.

When the girls were sophomores in 2005, the Illineks went 14-14, only the second time in school history that a Uni volleyball team had reached .500. The previous .500 season came in 1996, when a squad led by then-senior Amanda Smeltzer went 10-10. Those 10 wins stood as the record for almost a decade.

In their junior year, Uni finished 15-14-1, the school's first-ever winning season in the sport. The team also went 8-4 in the ECIC (second place), compared to 6-6 (fourth place) the year before.

Then came their final season, and the team set new standards yet again for both overall wins and conference victories.

It's been quite a turnaround for Uni volleyball. In 2004, when the current seniors were freshmen, the Uni varsity went 2-21 overall, 1-11 in the ECIC (last place). Then a year later Amanda Palla — formerly Amanda Smeltzer — returned to her alma mater to coach the varsity, and the transformation began.

The senior class has been around to experience all these changes. So what contributed to the team’s metamorphosis?

“Practices are more structured, and Amanda is more clear about what we need to accomplish and how we’re gonna get there, which I think has really helped,” said Freeland.

“Amanda has a really good routine, and she has really driven us and made us the best that we can be,” said Welch, who finished her career as Uni's all-time assist leader with 847.

Improvement didn’t just come with the arrival of a new coaching staff. Players stepped up and motivated each other to play their best and to come out with wins.

“The biggest change has been leadership,” said Pfander. “With Annie Fehrenbacher my sophomore year, Mandy Grill my junior year, and Ruthie Welch my senior year, there has always been someone on the court to look to for guidance and support.”

With the loss of only two seniors (Grill and Beckaa Wallig) and the addition of one new player (sophomore Michelle Wong) this year, the team capitalized on their experience as teammates.

“We’ve been able to work on several things for a period of two years,” said Freeland. “We’re able to trust each other, and I think we’re able to play better from it.”

“I think it’s a really mental game, and it really helps that we know each other and we’re able to trust each other,” said Johnson.

As classmates, the girls developed a closeness outside the sport that helped them as players.

“The six of us are all pretty amazing friends, and it carries over on the court,” said Jamie Weiser.

Added Welch: “We all love each other very much. Each person brings an individual personality to the team. Everyone is just so optimistic. We’re good at staying up and good with helping each other. Every time I’ve messed up, a team member has told me it's OK.”

Winning regularly helped change the players' perspectives. The acceptance of losing was no longer a part of team culture.

“Once we started winning, we all started getting it in our heads that we can win, so we all started trying more,” said Weiser.

“Everyone on varsity right now really wants to play volleyball, we all want to be here, we all want to win, and we all want to be competitive,” said Welch.

Once it was established last year that Uni volleyball could have a winning season, the girls no longer had doubts about what the team could accomplish.

“We always knew that this year was going to be amazing,” said Pfander.

Uni athletics will no doubt miss the six senior players. But what’s in the future for Illinek volleyball?

“Although I don't think we're all so amazing that we can't be replaced, I think it will be hard for the remaining varsity players and new incoming ones to adjust to playing with so many different people,” said middle hitter Karen Woodley. “But I don't doubt they'll work it out and have a pretty good season.”

THE SEASON IN REVIEW

2007 GIRLS VOLLEYBALL VARSITY RECORD: 20-11 overall, 9-3 East Central Illinois Conference
(home matches listed in bold)

Aug. 30: at Oakwood, L 18-25, 16-25

• Story: Uni drops season opener
• Kills: Karen Woodley 2, Sarah Pfander 2
• Assists: Ruth Welch 3, Sheri Grill 2
• Blocks: Rachel Skoza 2, Chelsea Freeland 1, Woodley 1
• Digs: Jamie Weiser 2, Annie Machesky 2, Welch 2, Pfander 2
• Aces: Weiser 2, Claire Johnson 1, Freeland 1, Pfander 1
• JV match: Uni def. Oakwood in three games: 25-17, 22-25, 25-13 (JV record: 1-0)

Sept. 1: at DeLand-Weldon Eagle Classic, 2 wins, 3 losses (4th place in 8-team tournament)

• Story: Illineks take fourth place at Eagle Classic tourney
• Match 1: vs. Atwood-Hammond, W 25-21, 25-20
• Match 2: vs. Kincaid South Fork, W 25-14, 25-19
• Match 3: vs. Morrisonville, L 11-25, 17-25
• Match 4: vs. Bement, L 23-25, 16-25
• Match 5: vs. Morrisonville, L 21-25, 23-25
• Kills (Uni leaders for tournament): Rachel Skoza 23, Sarah Pfander 15, Karen Woodley 14, Ruth Welch 13
• Assists (Uni leaders for tournament): Welch 41, Sheri Grill 16, Claire Johnson 7
• Blocks (Uni leaders for tournament): Skoza 8, Woodley 5
• Digs (Uni leaders for tournament): Jamie Weiser 27, Michelle Wong 16, Annie Machesky 13, Pfander 9, Welch 7, Chelsea Freeland 5
• Aces (Uni leaders for tournament): Machesky 8, Johnson 5, Welch 3

Sept. 4: at Buckley Christ Lutheran, W 16-25, 25-19, 25-10 *

• Story: Conference play opens with Uni win
• Kills: Rachel Skoza 7, Sarah Pfander 5, Karen Woodley 4
• Assists: Ruthie Welch 11, Sheri Grill 2
• Blocks: Skoza 3, Woodley 1
• Digs: Annie Machesky 7, Welch 5, Jamie Weiser 5
• Aces: Welch 7, Claire Johnson 3, Weiser 2

Sept. 7: at Decatur Christian, W 25-21, 25-14 *

• Story: Uni wins again in conference play
• Kills: Rachel Skoza 5, Karen Woodley 5
• Assists: Ruthie Welch 7, Claire Johnson 4, Sheri Grill 1
• Blocks: Skoza 1, Woodley 1
• Digs: Jamie Weiser 6, Annie Machesky 5, Welch 5, Sarah Pfander 3
• Aces: Johnson 6, Welch 3, Weiser 1, Pfander 1
• Junior varsity match: W 25-11, 25-16 (JV record: 2-0 overall, 1-0 ECIC)

Sept. 8: at Westville Invitational, 3 wins, 1 loss (2nd place in 5-team tournament)

• Story: Uni meets challenge, places second in tournament
• Match 1: vs. Westville, W 25-22, 20-25, 25-18
• Match 2: vs. Georgetown-Ridge Farm, L 25-13, 18-25, 21-25
• Match 3: vs. Heritage, W 25-17, 23-25, 25-21
• Match 4: vs. Salt Fork, W 25-23, 25-20
• Kills (tournament): Rachel Skoza 21, Karen Woodley 14, Chelsea Freeland 10, Claire Johnson 10, Sarah Pfander 10, Ruthie Welch 10, Annie Machesky 6, Sheri Grill 2
• Assists (tournament): Welch 40, Grill 19, Freeland 1
• Blocks (tournament): Woodley 8, Skoza 4, Pfander 1
• Digs (tournament): Jamie Weiser 45, Pfander 32, Machesky 26, Welch 20, Michelle Wong 20, Freeland 9, Grill 9, Johnson 3, Woodley 2
• Aces (tournament): Welch 9, Machesky 5, Woodley 5, Freeland 2, Pfander 2, Weiser 2, Wong 2, Johnson 1, Skoza 1

Sept. 10: at St. Thomas More, L 10-25, 16-25

• Story: Uni ready for first home match after falling to strong St. Thomas More squad
• Kills: Karen Woodley 2, Rachel Skoza 2
• Assists: Ruthie Welch 4
• Blocks: Skoza 1, Woodley 1, Sarah Pfander 1
• Digs: Jamie Weiser 4, Michelle Wong 4, Annie Machesky 2
• Aces: Welch 2, Machesky 1
• Junior varsity match: L 19-25, 13-25 (JV record: 2-1 overall, 1-0 ECIC)

Sept. 11: Normal Calvary Baptist, L 18-25, 25-13, 22-25 *

• Story: Home debut ends in close loss to Normal Calvary Baptist
• Kills: Rachel Skoza 9, Karen Woodley 6, Chelsea Freeland 5
• Assists: Ruthie Welch 17, Sheri Grill 7
• Blocks: Freeland 2, Skoza 1
• Digs: Annie Machesky 13, Michelle Wong 9, Jamie Weiser 3
• Aces: Welch 3, Woodley 2
• Junior varsity match: W 25-8, 25-15 (JV record: 3-1 overall, 2-0 ECIC)

Sept. 14: DeLand-Weldon, W 25-18, 25-15 *

• Story: Uni makes quick work of DeLand-Weldon
• Kills: Rachel Skoza 7, Karen Woodley 3, Claire Johnson 2
• Assists: Ruthie Welch 8, Sheri Grill 3
• Blocks: Skoza 3, Woodley 2, Sarah Pfander 2
• Digs: Jamie Weiser 7, Michelle Wong 4, Welch 4
• Aces: Welch 3, Machesky 2, Pfander 2
• Junior varsity match: none

Sept. 17: Fisher, L 22-25, 23-25

• Story: Illineks drop match to Bunnies
• Kills: Karen Woodley 5, Rachel Skoza 5
• Assists: Ruthie Welch 9, Sheri Grill 4
• Blocks: Chelsea Freeland 3, Skoza 2
• Digs: Sarah Pfander 10, Jamie Weiser 7
• Aces: Welch 1, Weiser 1, Michelle Wong 1
• Junior varsity match: L 9-25, 13-25 (JV record: 3-2 overall, 2-0 ECIC)

Sept. 21: at Decatur Lutheran, L 7-25, 8-25 *

• Story: Decatur Lutheran stays perfect, defeats Illineks
• Kills: several players with 1
• Assists: Ruthie Welch 3
• Blocks: Karen Woodley 1
• Digs: Jamie Weiser 10, Welch 5
• Aces: Welch 1, Sarah Pfander 1
• Junior varsity match: L 3-25, 25-22, 13-15 (JV record: 3-3 overall, 2-1 ECIC)

Sept. 25: at Judah Christian, W 25-19, 25-9 *

• Story: Illineks bounce back, sweep Judah Christian
• Kills: Rachel Skoza 6, Karen Woodley 5, Sarah Pfander 3
• Assists: Ruthie Welch 12, Sheri Grill 2, Jamie Weiser 1
• Blocks: Skoza 1, Woodley 1
• Digs: Pfander 6, Welch 6, Michelle Wong 6, Grill 5, Annie Machesky 5,
• Aces: Welch 3, Machesky 2, Weiser 2, Claire Johnson 1
• Junior varsity match: W 26-24, 20-25, 25-18 (JV record: 4-3 overall, 3-1 ECIC)

Sept. 27: Atwood-Hammond, W 25-16, 10-25, 25-23

• Story: Uni defeats Atwood-Hammond, reaches 10 wins
• Kills: Rachel Skoza 9, Karen Woodley 8
• Assists: Ruthie Welch 11, Sheri Grill 4
• Blocks: Woodley 3, Welch 3, Skoza 1
• Digs: Jamie Weiser 9, Welch 9, Annie Machesky 8, Michelle Wong 4
• Aces: Weiser 3, Woodley 2
• Junior varsity match: Uni defeats Atwood-Hammond in two games: 25-13, 25-17 (JV record: 5-3 overall, 3-1 ECIC)

Sept. 28: Buckley Christ Lutheran, W 25-16, 25-9 *

• Story: Illineks make quick work of conference foe
• Kills: Rachel Skoza 4, Karen Woodley 2
• Assists: Ruthie Welch 5, Sheri Grill 4
• Blocks: Woodley 1
• Digs: Welch 6, Annie Machesky 4, Michelle Wong 4, Jamie Weiser 4
• Aces: Welch 3, Claire Johnson 2, Wong 2
• Junior varsity match: none

Oct. 2: Decatur Christian, W 25-19, 25-21 *

• Story: Uni takes care of Decatur Christian, closes in on school record for wins
• Kills: Rachel Skoza 7, Karen Woodley 3, Ruthie Welch 2, Claire Johnson 2
• Assists: Welch 10, Sheri Grill 2
• Blocks: Skoza 2
• Digs: Welch 11, Jamie Weiser 6, Sarah Pfander 5
• Aces: Weiser 2, Annie Machesky 2
• Junior varsity match: Uni defeats Decatur Christian in three games: 25-21, 20-25, 15-11 (JV record: 6-3 overall, 4-1 ECIC)

Oct. 5: at Normal Calvary Baptist, W 16-25, 26-24, 25-15 *

• Story: Illineks win nail-biter, defeat Normal Calvary Baptist for 13th victory
• Kills: Rachel Skoza 8, Karen Woodley 5, Chelsea Freeland 4
• Assists: Ruthie Welch 10, Sheri Grill 4
• Blocks: Skoza 3, Woodley 1
• Digs: Michelle Wong 9, Jamie Weiser 8, Sarah Pfander 5
• Aces: Welch 7, Woodley 5, Weiser 3
• Junior varsity match: Uni defeats Normal Calvary Baptist in three games: 25-27, 25-23, 15-11 (JV record: 7-3 overall, 5-1 ECIC)

Oct. 6: at Buckley Christ Lutheran Crusader Invitational, 5 wins, 0 losses (1st place in 4-team tournament)

• Story: Tournament champs set school record for wins, Skoza named MVP
• Match 1: vs. Buckley Christ Lutheran (8 a.m.), W 25-22, 25-24
• Match 2: vs. Cornerstone Christian (10 a.m.), W 25-17, 25-11
• Match 3: vs. Judah Christian (noon), W 25-23, 25-9
• Match 4: vs. Cornerstone Christian (2:15 p.m.), W 25-15, 25-9
• Match 5: vs. Buckley Christ Lutheran (5:15 p.m.), W 24-26, 25-21, 16-14
• Kills (totals for tournament): Rachel Skoza 33, Karen Woodley 27, Chelsea Freeland 13, Sarah Pfander 11, Claire Johnson 9, Ruthie Welch 3, Annie Machesky 2
• Assists (totals for tournament): Ruthie Welch 30, Michelle Wong 20, Sheri Grill 18, Johnson 8
• Blocks (totals for tournament): Skoza 9, Johnson 1
• Digs (totals for tournament): Jamie Weiser 34, Machesky 31, Wong 24, Welch 16, Pfander 15, Freeland 8, Grill 6, Woodley 5, Johnson 5
• Aces (totals for tournament): Wong 16, Machesky 10, Welch 9, Weiser 7, Johnson 7, Woodley 5, Pfander 4, Skoza 3

Oct. 9: at DeLand-Weldon, W 25-19, 25-15 *

• Story: Illineks add to school record with win over DeLand-Weldon
• Kills: Karen Woodley 7, Rachel Skoza 5
• Assists: Ruthie Welch 9, Sheri Grill 4, Claire Johnson 2
• Blocks: Skoza 2
• Digs: Johnson 4, Welch 4, Sarah Pfander 4, Annie Machesky 3
• Aces: Welch 7, Johnson 5
• Junior varsity match: None, but Uni will host an 8-team JV tournament on Saturday. The Uni JV is 7-3 overall, 5-1 ECIC.

Oct. 16: Decatur Lutheran, L 16-25, 17-25 *

• Story: Illineks lose to conference champ Decatur Lutheran
• Kills: Karen Woodley 3, Rachel Skoza 2, Ruthie Welch 2, Sarah Pfander 2, Claire Johnson 2
• Assists: Welch 5, Sheri Grill 3, Johnson 1
• Blocks: Woodley 1
• Digs: Annie Machesky 5, Johnson 5, Pfander 5, Welch 4
• Aces: Welch 2, Macheskey 1
• Junior varsity match: Uni lost to LSA 20-25, 20-25. (JV record: 7-4 overall, 5-2 ECIC, not including results from Oct. 13 JV tournament)

Oct. 19: Judah Christian, W 25-14, 25-15 *

• Story: Uni ends regular season with 20th win
• Kills: Karen Woodley 8, Rachel Skoza 5, Ruthie Welch 3, Chelsea Freeland 2
• Assists: Welch 8, Sheri Grill 5
• Blocks: Woodley 2
• Digs: Jamie Weiser 6, Sarah Pfander 5, Welch 3, Annie Machesky 3
• Aces: Welch 4, Woodley 3, Johnson 2, Weiser 1
• Junior varsity match: Uni lost to Judah Christian 14-25, 18-25. (Final JV record: 7-5 overall, 5-3 ECIC, not including results from Oct. 13 JV tournament)

Oct. 23: at Clinton, L 10-25, 11-25 (first round of Class 2A playoffs)

• Story: see above
• Kills: Sarah Pfander 3, Claire Johnson 2, Ruthie Welch 1, Karen Woodley 1, Rachel Skoza 1
• Assists: Welch 4, Woodley 1, Sheri Grill 1
• Digs: Jamie Weiser 6, Sarah Pfander 4, Welch 4, Johnson 4
• Junior varsity match: None. (Final JV record: 7-5 overall, 5-3 ECIC, not including results from Oct. 13 JV tournament)

* East Central Illinois Conference match