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...
Way-too-early look at some of the best girls high school teams in each class in 2019
Can Marist become the first team in IHSA to repeat in Class 4A? That will be one of the storylines to follow during the 2019 Illinois girls high school volleyball season. (Photos by Dave Ruggles) Food for thought...The 2019 Illinois high school girls volleyball season doesn’t kick off until August 26. But it’s never too early to speculate who some of the best teams in each class will be. A few notable schools have changed classes in 2019 thanks to the IHSA’s new classification system and the success factor, the latter affecting two school...
‘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...
‘Help for Heidi’ established to help family of mom battling stage 4 breast cancer
Michio Chicago 17 National wore pink at the USA Volleyball Girls Junior National Championships in Indianapolis to honor all the club's mothers who are battling breast cancer, including Heidi Jendry, the mother of Avery Jedry from Marist. Michio Chicago 17 National finished third in the 17 Open division. ...
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...