Joey Glennon (14) and Lincoln-Way East went 2-0 at the Wheaton Warrenville South Tiger Classic on Thursday. (File photo by Dave Ruggles) By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com EditorThe top seeds were dropping like flies Thursday on day one of the Wheaton Warrenville South Tiger Classic.Sets, not matches.Top-seeded Lincoln-Way East (10-1) was the only one of the four top seeds in action Thursday to avoid dropping a set, sweeping Oswego, 25-17, 25-20, and St. Charles North, 25-18, 25-16, to advance to Saturday’s quarterfinals beginning at 9:00 a.m....
Oak Park-River Forest’s ‘redemption tour’ begins at York summer league
Oak Park-River Forest, led by Grace Nelson (11) and Kinsey Smith (4), won the York summer league tournament Monday. https://youtu.be/qerVsnXPrUo By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com EditorIt’s only summer, but …The Oak Park-River Forest redemption tour began in earnest Monday night.“The girls were disappointed with their with their finish last season,” said Oak Park-River Forest coach Kelly Collins, whose 27-10 team was defeated by Mother McAuley, 25-15, 25-15, in a sectional semifinal at Lyons Township a little more than 15 months ago.“The...
Presenting the SPVB/Illprepvb.com top 100 (and then some) girls club players
Addison Horner (8), Abby VanderWal (on home page) and 1st Alliance 16 Gold are favored to bring hme a national championship from the USAV Girls Junior National Championship at McCormick Place. (Photos by Dave Ruggles) By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com EditorNeed something to do for the next few weeks? The top girls club teams from Illinois will either fly east down the Eisenhower or southeast via Southwest to compete in the 2023 USAV Girls Junior 14s-17s National Championship at McCormick Place, June 28-July 6, or the 2023 AAU Girls Junior...
The time is now at Oak Park, move to 4A won’t wow Nazareth; more ’23 previews
Oak Park-River Forest figures to be one of the best teams in Class 4A this season behind Kansas-bound outside hitter Grace Nelson and Davidson College recruit setter Kinsey Smith. By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com EditorThe Illinios girls high school volleyball season begins in earnest in just a few days, and today Illprepvb.com continues its annual series of previews of the teams, players and coaches whose ultimate goal is a trip to Redbird (now CEFCU) Arena on the campus of Illinois State University in Normal.Here is nearly everything yo...
Lockport’s young guns stun Lincoln-Way East: Lyons, Levinson stop Glenbard East
Lyons Township defeated Glenbard East on Thursday to win the regional at Naperville Central. https://youtu.be/IlDZBeCjmGY At LockportIt’s not next year. The time is now for the Lockport boys' volleyball team.Without a single senior starter, many pundits thought the Porters were a year away from making a big playoff push. Instead, they went out and rallied for a 19-25, 25-20, 25-21 win over top-seed Lincoln-Way East in Thursday’s title match of the Lockport Regional.After winning just three regional titles between 1993 and 2017, Lockpo...
Presenting the latest Illprepvb.com/1st Alliance VBC Boys High School Rankings
Barington's Quinn Kozak (9) and Gavin Rohlwing (11) go up to block St. Rita's Aidan Peloquin (2) at the Wheaton Warrenville South Tiger Classic. (Photos by Dave Ruggles) By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com Editor“I told the boys that championships are won in June, not in April.” – Lincoln-Way West coach Jodi Frigo.Frigo is absolutely correct. We are not even halfway through the boys’ season, and it’s too early to speculate about what will happen at Hoffman Estate June 2-3. But we do know this … there are teams that have established themselves a...
Presenting the latest Michio Chicago VBA/Illprepvb.com Girls H.S. Rankings
Back on top. Benet Acadmey's loss to Marist last week and Marist's loss to Mother McAuley at the ASICS Challenge put the Mighty Macs back on top the Michio Chicago VBA/Illprepvb.com rGirls High School Rankings. (Photo by Dave Ruggles) By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com EditorSports Performance owner/director Troy Gilb, who coached in Nebraska for several years, has a novel idea.Why not follow the Nebraska model when conducting the IHSA tournament?Nebraska, which has six classes, divides the state into six sections. Each section winner ...
Moorhead, O’Neill champs again as Glenbard West defeats Lyons for IHSA title
Glenbard West's bench storms the court after Liam O'Neill's kill at match point gave the Toppers their second consecutive IHSA championship Saturday at Hoffman Estates, (Photos by Dave Ruggles) https://youtu.be/wl5mmyRxsy4 By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com EditorCould Glenbard West be two-thirds of the way to another three-peat?“I won't say anything about it, but that would be awesome if they could,” said Glenbard West’s 6-5 outside hitter Parker Moorhead.Moorhead had 11 kills, 3 assists, 1 ace, a dig and a block, and 6-5 middle hitt...
Tharpe leads Whitney Young past Jones College Prep; eyes ultimate prize
Jones College Prep fell into a first-place tie with Whitney Young and Taft in the Chicago Public Gold with its 25-21, 25-29 loss to the Dolphins on Tuesday. By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com EditorFew could have imagined that after his friend dragged him to a boys’ volleyball tryout a few years back that Whitney Young’s 6-8 outside hitter Tyler Tharpe would have developed into one of the top high school players in the country.But there is one thing that Tharpe, who has committed to continue his academic and volleyball career at Ohio State next...
Benet Academy, Naperville North on a collision course after sectional victories
Benet Academy's Annie Eschenbach slams a kill past the outstretched arms of Oswego East's Cailyn Smiley (14) and Ava Stiller (13) during Monday's first sectional semifinal at Plainfield North. (Photos by Dave Ruggles) By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com EditorAnnie Eschenbach remembers.“This is the game that we lost last year,” said Eschenbach, Benet Academy’s 6-4 middle hitter and one of a handful of returning starters who lived through last year’s 25-14, 18-25, 25-18 sectional semifinal loss to Plainfield North at Oswego.“Going into this game,...