Korbakes leads Shepard past Richards

Updated: October 11, 2011 8:10PM

As Shepard’s starting setter, Stephanie Korbakes’ focus first and foremost is spreading the ball around to her teammates.

As for other aspects of the game, the junior has to pick and choose.

Dishing out the ball, putting down kills, coming through with blocks and aces, Korbakes did it all in Tuesday’s 21-25, 25-18, 25-17 South Suburban Red win at No. 7 Richards.

“I kind of go with the flow and see if I need to put down a kill,” Korbakes said with a smile. “We’ve come out strong this year, and we wanted to do good. We put our minds to it and pushed.”

Korbakes finished with 15 assists, four kills and four blocks for Shepard (13-6, 9-2). Stephanie Williamson (15 digs), Sam Ziola-Vega (12 kills) and Natalie Carberry (7 kills) also contributed for the Astros.

Richards (18-4, 8-3) was led by Codie Morey (12 assists, 10 digs, 9 kills), Kara Rockey (29 digs) and Allison Stazak (12 assists).

With the win, Shepard controls its fate in the South Suburban Red. If the Astros win out, beating Eisenhower and Evergreen Park, Shepard will take its first conference title since 2005.

The Astros gave away the opener with eight late errors. After Shepard pulled away late in the second game for the win, Korbakes went to work.

The third game tied at 14 when Korbakes started a run with her fourth kill. The junior led a 6-0 service run that included an ace, two Richards errors, two blocks from Shepard’s Katelyn Anderson (3 blocks) and a Carberry kill.

“We needed to come back,” Korbakes said. “We wanted to protect our first place (status) in conference. We were ready and pumped, and we wanted it so bad.”

Richards still is in the conference hunt but will need help down the stretch.

“We’ve got to win our last two games and hope something else happens,” Richards coach Troy Grevengoed said. “We played tough, but didn’t adjust enough.”

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