When a team is reeling, sometimes all it takes is a couple words of encouragement to turn everything around. With Payton down four (14-10) in the second set of its sectional semifinal match with Latin, Grizzlies coach Casey Feeney called a timeout to calm his players down.

“He really just told us to relax, not make as many errors,’’ said senior Alex Bresler.

“We wanted to play like we did in the first set and coach just told us we’re better than how we’re playing,’’ said Earl Schultz.

Feeney’s words woke the Grizzles, as they went on a 9-2 run to take control of the set en route to their 25-13, 25-21 win Friday evening at Young.

Behind the serving of libero Andres Correa and timely hitting by Bresler and senior outside hitter Mitch Laski, Payton (26-7) played as it had in the first set and locked up its second straight trip to the sectional final to be played on Tuesday, also at Young.

Latin, which was making its first sectional appearance after winning its first regional title Wednesday, was able to play with the Grizzlies throughout a portion of the first set, cutting the lead down to 11-8, but Payton went on a 14-5 run to close the set. Schultz had four kills in the run, as the Grizzlies showcased why they earned the top seed in the sectional.

Latin got off to the quick start in the second set behind the powerful arm of Liam Farley, who had two of the Romans’ (15-11) four points. Farley finished with three kills on the evening.

“The difference between the first and second set was errors,’’ said Bresler. “We started out the set with a couple errors, including a couple serving errors, and that’s uncommon for us.’’

Schultz finished with seven kills, while Bresler had nine.

Payton moves on to face St. Patrick, who defeated Young in the other semifinal. Payton and St. Patrick played for the sectional title last year as well, with Payton escaping with a 25-11, 25-21 win.

Link to story: http://bit.ly/10xRqXj