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...
Final 2019 1st Alliance VBC/Illprepvb.com Girls Club Rankings
Adversity G16 Adidas was the only team from Illinois to qualify in the 16 Open division at the 2019 USA Volleyball Girls Junior National Championships. Adversity ranks second in the final 2019 1st Alliance VBC/Illprepvb.com Girls Club Rankings. Another club season is in the books. Congratulations to all the teams that qualified for the USA Volleyball Junior National Championships and all the teams that competed in the AAU Girls Junior National Championships. Here are the final 2019 1st Alliance VBC/Illprepvb.com Girls Club Rankings...
‘Weird’ is the new normal for Benet in its bid for fourth title in nine years
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...
Minooka ‘mans up’ to race past Plainfield South; Timothy Christian gets first varsity win
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 ...
Wardlow, Bolingbrook are not going to be an easy out, as Lincoln-Way West will attest
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...
The Latest 1st Alliance Volleyball Club/Illprepvb.com Boys High School Rankings
(Photo by Dave Ruggles) Finally at full strength, New Trier put itself back into the IHSA tournament title picture by defeating Oak Park-River Forest at the Northside Classic. Meanwhile, preseason No. 1 Glenbard West, which a few weeks earlier easily handled Oak Park-River Forest, lost to the Huskies in the semifinals. Elsewhere, Minooka didn’t lose to anybody at Metea Valley, and Lake Forest and Neuqua Valley struggled with their two stars playing in the Pan Am Games in Lima, Peru. Hinsdale Central won the title at York, Leyden won its ...
Minooka, Newark share a court at UNO, expectations for mid-November
Megan Williams and Newark, who rate as heavy favorites to repeat as IHSA Class 1A champions, are getting ready for the regular season at the UNO Summer League. (Photo by Dave Ruggles) Newark's Madi Malone is expected to be at full strength when the regular season begins August 26. By Randy WhalenSpecial to Illprepvb.com Two girls’ volleyball programs that have experienced a lot of recent success were on the court together Wednesday at the UNO Volleyball Center in Joliet. Although neither Minooka nor Newark were at full stre...
Hersey routs defending league champ Barrington to wear the 2019 MSL crown
Hersey avenged two earlier losses to Barrington to win the Mid-Suburban League championship Wednesday in Arlington Heights. Junior outside hitter Ben Ridgway was the lone bright spot for Barrington Wednesday at Hersey. (Photo by Dave Ruggles) Hersey setter Jakub Migus said his team was overthinking too much earlier in the season, particularly on defense.Now the Huskies can think of themselves as Mid-Suburban League champions.Migus had 22 assists, 2 kills and a block, junior outside hitter Tim Nugent had 9 kills, and No. 23 Hersey (27-7 o...
Lincoln-Way West keeps title hopes alive by pulling inside job on Lincoln-Way East
Lincoln-Way West broke a 1-1 tie in this season's series with rival Lincoln-Way East with its win Tuesday, but more importantly, the Warriors kept their Southwest Suburban Conference title hopes alive. (Photos by Dave Ruggles) Lincoln-Way West libero Tyler Vedder. By Randy WhalenSpecial to Illprepvb.com Dargan dominated the middle. Running the game plan to perfection, Chris Dargan had 9 kills and 3 blocks and fellow middle hitter Shane Wegrzyn added 6 kills as host Lincoln-Way West moved a step closer to earning at least a sh...
Massac County, Montini drop down, look up; will Spartans surprise again?
Massac County and Montini are two teams dropping down from Class 3A to 2A for the 2019 and 2020 seasons thanks to the IHSA's new enrollment reclassification policy. School: BarringtonConference: Mid-Suburban WestHead coach: Michelle Jakubowski Last season’s highlights: 24-12 overall, 9-1 in conference, defeated Buffalo Grove, 25-22, 23-25, 25-21, to win Mid-Suburban League championship, lost to Cary-Grove, 25-20, 25-16, in Class 4A regional semifinal.Top returnees: 5-11 senior middle blocker Noelle Daehler, 5-3 seni...