Volleyball: Genoa-Kingston beats DeKalb in coach Keith Foster’s return

GENOA – Separated by a pair of classes, there’s not exactly a storied rivalry between cross-county foes Genoa-Kingston and DeKalb.

At least, before this year.

The 4A Barbs came to town Wednesday with new coach Keith Foster, who was at the helm of the Cogs for 14 years. He won 309 games and helped the Cogs win the Class 2A state championship in 2022.

Genoa-Kingston topped the Barbs and their old coach 25-23, 25-18.

“DeKalb is a new rival for us and I think that’s just a lot of motivation for us,” G-K setter Mia Wise said. “Our old coach moved there. So it’s a fun game too. Like we’re all super-hyped.”

After a back-and-forth first set that DeKalb led 22-21, the Cogs took control with a 10-2 run in the second. The lead grew to 19-11, but Maddi Hollar had a pair of aces to kick off a DeKalb run that cut the score to 19-17.

The Barbs didn’t get any closer. The Cogs scored the next five points, including two kills each by Aubrey Wise and Bria Botterman to take control.

“It was surreal being on the away side vs. the home side,” Foster said. “But fans and the players from Genoa-Kingston, it was really great talking with them and seeing them again and seeing volleyball culture is still thriving here.”

Freshman Jessie Fredrickson had a huge match for the Cogs (4-5), hammering nine kills against the Barbs (2-3).

She had kills on three straight points midway through the final game.

“Our setter connections with Jessie and Mia are great,” said Genoa-Kingston coach Taylor Spellman, a 2020 Dixon grad who took over for Foster. “They’ve been working very hard on it in practice. Keeping her smart, learning how to play a good ball, placing a ball where there’s open court as a freshman is kind of difficult when she’s so young. But she’s really taken to everything I have to say and connecting well with Mia.”

Aubrey Wise had six kills and four digs in the win, while Adi Galijatovic had seven digs to lead DeKalb.

The game was the varsity debut of Jordan Grant, who had two kills and two blocks, proving to be a disruptive force at the net.

“She was showing a lot in practice,” Foster said. “We run a cauldron-style practice where they’re consistently fighting for their job. Nothing is ever safe, week-to-week type situation. She earned it and I thought she did a good job with the opportunity she had.”

DeKalb started the night scoring six of the first seven points, but Genoa-Kingston scored the next five. The lead never swung more than three points either way until DeKalb took a 21-17 lead on a Genoa-Kingston attack error.

The Cogs went up 23-22 on a Fredrickson kill, and she added another when they went ahead 24-23.

“So this is a very bittersweet game for my kids,” Spellman said. “Most of these athletes had Foster for three or four years and they look up to him as a coach. It was fun and it was competitive. We wanted to get a win. We utilized everything we’ve been doing and were able to push to get that win.”

Foster said it was never about getting the win at his former school. He said it’s about process, and he was pleased with how much heart his team showed Wednesday.

“We’re not results oriented,” Foster said. “I was excited to come here to compete and play. We didn’t think about outcomes to be honest, not even on the ‘22 run we had. It wasn’t about outcomes. It was about what our plan is, executing the plan and showing progress from our last match.”