Every match has been a special one this season for Richards senior Sam Mayo. She’s closing out her volleyball career and wants to leave her mark.

She had an extra special motivation Tuesday.

Oak Lawn was in the building. And for her, there is no bigger rival.

“Oh, in every sport,” Mayo said, smiling. “Not even just volleyball. They go to Oak Lawn, they live in Oak Lawn, and we’ve grown up with them.

“I’ve gone to middle school with some of those girls. To beat up on old friends is kind of fun.”

She certainly had the final say in the Bulldogs’ 18-25, 25-19, 25-13 South Suburban Red victory.

Mayo chalked up 13 kills and two aces for Richards (6-1, 5-0). Tara Glynn added 12 kills, while Lilly Moran dished 29 assists.

Gabi Sadowski had seven kills and two blocks for Oak Lawn (5-2, 5-2). Kate Dillon added five kills, as did Mia Kennelly.

Mayo, a 5-foot-11 outside hitter, was nothing but clutch when it counted the most.

Down one game and clinging to an 18-17 lead in Game 2, Richards rallied as Mayo drilled a kill to the back line. With the score 22-19, she put down another kill and then served out the game.

She started Game 3 with a pair of kills, and after a few points landed an ace. Later, she was on a five-point serving run when she added perhaps the defensive play of the match with a backcourt dig.

“When we lost the first one, I just told myself that they shouldn’t be taking us to three,” Mayo said. “And it was a team that we love playing, so I knew I had to come out and be big.”

Mayo will be attending Arizona State, but she will be concentrating on a degree in nursing.

Her shortened senior season, she said, means a lot.

“Being a three-year varsity kid and playing with some phenomenal players has just been a dream come true,” Mayo said. “I’ve been playing volleyball since middle school. But I never thought I’d be stepping on a varsity court for three seasons.”

No one has set the table for Mayo longer than Moran.

“We’ve been playing together since middle school,” Moran said. “I love working with Sam. She gets around every ball, and she loves my sets. I love seeing her smack the ball down every time.”

The effort against Oak Lawn

was Mayo’s most productive match of the season.

“She kind of had the breakout night she’s been waiting for,” Richards coach Troy Grevengoed said. “She was way more physical this time, being aggressive with her swings and hitting shots she wasn’t hitting a month ago.

“She was fired up (Tuesday). She had some passion. I saw her pick up some good digs at the end. That’s a part of her game we’ve been working on. To see her win some good rallies was really nice.”

Glynn added to her team-leading 34 kills with a power effort from the left side. The 5-8 junior dominated in Game 3 with six kills.

“Tara jumps well,” Grevengoed said. “She just has a really good knack to be slow but then fast to the ball. She waits long enough and then she’s super dynamic to get to the ball. And she has great balance, so she can do a lot with it.

“We knew her sophomore year we’d have to have her up full time. We graduated a really big senior class, so she stepped in right away. She had her normal sophomore struggles, but she has figured out how to be much more offensive, and with her strong defense, she helps us out in many different ways.”