Dulle, Downs Tri-Valley open season with win over Bloomington Central Catholic

Veteran coach Donna Dulle (in blue shirt) speaks to her Downs Tri-Valley volleyball team during a 25-11, 25-19 season-opening victory over visiting Bloomington Central Catholic on Thursday. (Photo by Randy Sharer) By Randy SharerSpecial to Illprepvb.comDOWNS – Most volleyball teams coached by the legendary Donna Dulle are like picky restaurant guests … they send almost everything back.Such was the case again Thursday when Tri-Valley, ranked No. 6 in Class 2A by Illprepvb.com, returned more than enough of Bloomington Central Catholic’s ...

Naperville Central reaching for success in a much-changed environment

With four juniors playing key rolesy, Naperville Central improvd to 4-3 with a 25-21, 27-25 victory Tuesday over Downers Grove North. By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com EditorNaperville Central was one of the most dominant large-school teams in Illinois from 1998 to 2007, winning eight regional titles, three sectional titles and making three appearances in the IHSA finals at Redbird Arena.The Redhawks won two IHSA championships during that period, claiming the Class AA title in 2005 behind Tara Hester, Jessica Yanz and Caitlin Staib, and the...

Benet Academy plays rotation roulette, wins twice at Wheaton North tournament

Benet Academy rolled out a few dfferent lineups Wednesday in the opening round of the Wheaton North Blue & Gold Invitational, but won both of its matches against Kaneland and West Aurora. By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com EditorSetters playing outside. Middles playing rightside. So many substitutions you needed a GPS tracker to keep pace.Simply put, to quote one of the greatest movie lines of all time, it was, “Madness.”“We thought we had a lineup, but then we had an injury, so now we've had a few days to try to mix and match a little...