Stevenson’s Mija Jegers didn’t enjoy watching Libertyville win back-to-back North Suburban Conference titles during her first two varsity seasons.

The senior outside hitter was determined to enjoy the party in her last go-round.

“I really did not want to see (Libertyville) celebrate again without us, especially on their home floor,” Jegers said. “We knew we had to find some way to at least earn a share of the title.”

Jegers and the Patriots eventually found a way.

The 5-foot-10 Jegers recorded 12 kills on Wednesday as Stevenson rallied to beat first-place Libertyville 24-26, 25-20, 25-14 on the road to secure a share of the conference title.

“Being a senior, it means so much to me to finally win it,” she said. “It’s important because I know it’s the result of a lot of work and a lot of team chemistry to put it all together at the end of the season.”

Jegers, an Iona recruit, has done it all for the Patriots (28-6, 6-1) during her three varsity seasons. She has team highs with 211 kills, a .267 hitting percentage, 42 blocks and 183 digs this season.

“You sometimes just sit back in awe on what Mija can do on the court,” Stevenson coach Tim Crow said. “When we need something big to happen, she’s usually the one making a play.”

Libertyville coach Greg Loika knows what Jegers can do.

“(Jegers) can hurt you in a lot of ways, but Stevenson has so many big players who can swing hard that it is tough to key on any one player,” he said. “That’s what makes them so dangerous.”

Being a team leader might be one of Jegers’ best attributes, as she kept the Patriots together after they dropped the opening set against Libertyville (26-9, 6-1).

“When we lost to Warren earlier in the season, we knew we had to have a reset in order to still reach our goal of winning the conference,” Jegers said. “We needed to play much more unselfishly and not worry about the individual stats. The only way to turn it around was to play better in a team concept.

“That’s what we had to do in the second and third game (against Libertyville). We had to go back to what has been working for us in the second half of the season.”

To be successful this season, Stevenson has played solid defense and fed the ball to its talented hitters.

“Mija was Mija, but Ava Wysocki had some big kills for us on the other side when she was against a single block, especially in the second and third games,” Crow said. “Brynn Smith also did a great job hitting, and Kyra Costabile was setting well.

“We are going to need everyone at their best if we want to have a good run in the state playoffs.”

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Stevenson is seeded second behind Barrington in the Class 4A Hoffman Estates Sectional. After the regular-season finale against Glenbard West on Friday, the Patriots will play South Elgin or host Larkin in a regional semifinal on Tuesday.

Libertyville is the top-seeded team in the 4A Huntley Sectional and will open against Waukegan or Zion-Benton in a Grant Regional semifinal on Tuesday.

Looking far ahead, Stevenson and Libertyville could meet again in the Barrington Supersectional.

“I guess it’s the way it should be with the two conference co-champions on different sides of the bracket, so we could battle again if we both keep winning,” Crow said.

Jegers said she wouldn’t mind such a showdown with a trip downstate at stake.

“It would be something for our conference,” she said. “For us, we just want to be playing our best in the playoffs, and I think we are doing that. It should be fun.”

Darren Day is a freelance reporter for the News-Sun.