Nazareth saw its 2018 season end with a loss to St. Francis in a Class 3A sectional semifinal. Six of seven starters from that team return in 2019. Nazareth Academy has one goal this fall, and that's to finish the job. Nazareth middle hitter and BYU recruit Leilani Dodson Despite many years of success under Wayne Saunders and Melissa Masterson, the Roadrunners have yet to advance to Redbird Arena. Nazareth has only one sectional title (2009) to its credit, and that season ended with a 13-25, 25-15, 25-13 loss to Crystal Lake Central ...

Six-foot-3 middle hitter Gretchen Ketehut has recovered from injuries suffered in a car accident during the summer of 2018 and joins returning starters (from left) Anna Gawron, Lilly Summers, Ali Jansen and Ella Wrobel to give Plainfield North one of the top lineups in Illinois. School: Aurora Central Catholic Conference: Metro Suburban BlueHead coach: Claire GartlandLast season’s highlights: 13-19 overall, 0-5 in conference,lost to Wheaton Academy,25-17, 21-25, 25-18, in a Class 3A regional semifinal. Top returnees: 5-9 junior outside hitt...

It's been a season of ups and downs for Mother McAuley, but Tuesday was decidedly an "up." By Randy Whalen Special to Illprepvb.com When you have a program that has captured 15 state championships, including one just two years ago, it's easy to lose track of how many conference championships have been won along the way. But in a season of ups and downs, it was still an accomplishment for the Mother McAuley volleyball team to clinch at least a share of another one Tuesday night. That's what the Mighty Macs did as they showed a spark...

Marian Catholic's Jaya Hall, London Hatch, Temitayo Thomas-Ailara, Savka Popovic and Lauren Hatch. Benet led very little Tuesday against visiting Marian Catholic. But the Redwings led when it mattered. No. 3 Benet (24-4 overall, 5-1 in the East Suburban Catholic) trailed the entire first set and found itself down two set points at 24-22. The Redwings faced an even bigger deficit in Game 2, trailing 18-12 after a 7-0 run by the Spartans. But a kill and an ace by Benet’s 6-foot sophomore Rachel Muisenga followed by a Marian Catholic ...

Montini (6-4) finished 2-1 at the Lyons quadrangular Friday, losing for the second time in three meetings with York in the past 10 days, 25-19, 21-25, 17-15. It’s likely that the Normal West volleyball team pulled into its school parking lot sometime after 11:00 p.m. Friday night.The two-and-a-half hour bus trip from the western suburbs of Chicago certainly gave the young Wildcats a lot of time to think about their three matches at the Lyons quadrangular. Although Normal West dropped all three matches, it’s a sure bet that most of their th...

Necessity forced Benet to juggle its lineup in 2018 and play several players out of their normal positions. However, that won't be the case this fall. Quick. Without cheating. Who was the only Illinois team to defeat Class 4A champion Marist last season?If you guessed Benet Academy, give yourself a mighty slap on the back.In between a 25-23, 23-25, 25-19 loss in the championship match of the Tiger Classic on September 15 and a 25-18, 25-15 defeat in an IHSA Class 4A semifinal on November 9, the Redwings took down the eventual state cham...

Plainfield South's Cougars found themselves on the wrong end of the score Thursday at Minooka. (photo by Dave Ruggles) By Randy WhalenSpecial to Illprepvb.comIt was “next man up” and Minooka didn't miss a beat. Playing in its first match since winning the Wheaton Warrenville South Tiger Classic last Saturday, the Indians found themselves without senior middle hitter Noah Easter.“Noah has whatever is going around,” said Minooka coach Mike Kargle. “He was too sick to get out of bed.” Enter Jordan Boe. The sophomore stepped in at middle ...

Bolingbrook, which set a school record for wins this spring, has shown it can't be taken lightly in the IHSA tournament. (Photos by Dave Ruggles). Bolingbrook’s 6-foot-5 outside hitter Rico Wardlow played “about five or six sports” growing up, but … “I wasn't really good at any of them,” he said.That’s when his parents took him to a volleyball camp at Bolingbrook High School the summer before his freshman year.“I will never forget that day,” said Bolingbrook coach Molly DeSerf. “Rico came to camp as a freshman. His dad brought him. His dad...