Fox Valley area teams gear up for volleyball postseason
The Road to Redbird opens for business Monday night as girls volleyball teams in all four classes around the state embark on the postseason.
In the Fox Valley area, several interesting scenarios could develop as teams vie for a spot in the IHSA Final Four at Redbird Arena in Normal the weekend of Nov. 14-15.
Class 4A
Crystal Lake South sectional: Regional hosts are Cary-Grove, Prairie Ridge, Huntley and Rockford Guilford, which hosts all NIC-10 schools.
At Cary-Grove, the host Trojans (27-7) will have no easy task defending the top seed. They will face either No. 4 Lake Zurich or No. 5 Barrington on Tuesday night after those two play Monday. If seeds hold, C-G would then take on No. 2 Fremd (23-6), which will battle No. 4 Dundee-Crown (21-9) in Tuesday's second semifinal.
“(Lake Zurich and Barrington) both have big athletic teams so we're not looking ahead at anything more than what's starting us in the face,” said Cary-Grove coach Patty Langanis, whose team shared the Fox Valley Conference Valley Division title with CL South.
The Trojans have some size as well. Junior Ali Splitt leads the net attack at 6-2, but she gets plenty of help from players like 5-11 senior Abby Schebel, 6-0 sophomore Madison Katchen and 5-10 senior Morgan Lee.
“Morgan Lee has been a real powerful contributor for us,” said Langanis, whose team depends on the defensive leadership of 5-7 senior Bree Coffey. “We're real happy with what we have on offense and we're real happy with the way we've been playing. Since we crossed the midpoint of the season we're seen big improvement in our serve and serve receive games. They have become very consistent as the season has gone on and our offense has gotten faster and faster.”
Don't count Dundee-Crown (21-9) our of the picture. The Chargers are having one of their better seasons in recent years, led by senior Kiana Mays, junior Bre Novak and sophomore Ayana Gard and the capable defense and setting of juniors Gina Pagano and Frankie Cavallaro.
Barring upsets, Crystal Lake South and CL Central appear destined to meet again next week, this time at PR with a regional title on the line. The Gators (28-7) beat the Tigers (33-3) in the FVC crossover first-place game Thursday night and South is a tournament-tested team, having taken fourth in Class 4A last season, led by 6-0 senior Cincinnati recruit Carly Nolan, 6-1 senior Emma Burkle and 5-10 senior setter Cassy Sivesind.
CL Central is the top seed and takes on either McHenry or Grant in the semifinals; CL South, the No. 2 seed, will play PR (20-15) or Round Lake in the other semi.
The Huntley regional would appear to be there for the taking for the host and top seed Red Raiders (22-13), who will play on Tuesday against the winner of Monday's play-in game between No. 4 Jacobs (16-19) and Rockford Jefferson. Belvidere North and DeKalb meet in the other semi.
Huntley's young team is led by the steady play of senior setter Kesley DeWulff. Junior Erin Erb (5-11) and 5-9 sophomore Alyson Dion give the Raiders a presence at the net and senior DS Haley Arnieri is one of the better diggers in the area.
Hononegah and Rockford Boylan are the top seeds at the Guilford regional.
Maine East sectional: The four Elgin Area School District U-46 schools will have to pull some major upsets to get out of regional play within this sectional complex.
Larkin (11-24) is the No. 10 seed in the sectional and hosts a regional where it plays No. 8 Chicago Northside on Tuesday. A win would likely put the Royals up against sectional overall No. 1 seed Loyola for the regional title.
Elgin (11-21), South Elgin (18-13-1) and Streamwood (3-24) have been assigned to the Elk Grove regional. Elgin and Streamwood play each other Monday after No. 14 seed South Elgin takes on No. 18 Elk Grove. The winners get No. 3 Maine East and No. 6 Maine South in Tuesday's semifinals.
Bartlett sectional: Bartlett (4-18) is assigned to the Geneva regional where the 21st-seeded Hawks take on No. 12 Naperville Central Monday night. The Bartlett sectional is loaded, with once-beaten Benet Academy, the No. 2 team in the Daily Herald Top 20, the No. 1 seed and Glenbard West No. 2, with St. Charles East No. 3.
Class 3A
Rochelle sectional: Burlington Central (29-6) is the curious No. 2 seed at the Hampshire regional, where the Big Northern East champs will take on No. 3 Genoa-Kingston or No. 6 Hampshire in a Tuesday semifinal, following top seed Kaneland taking on No. 4 St. Edward (17-10) or No. 5 Sycamore.
The Rockets have fashioned another championship season behind defense and serving. They've rolled out multiple aces in several matches, led by senior Aly DeTamble, and used the efficient digging, led by senior Jenna Runde. Seniors Lauren Wiltsie and Emily Bozich along with junior Alexis VanHiel have been the team's leading hitters.
“We've had a really good season and we've been playing really well recently,” said BC coach Marv Leavitt. “We'll keep our goals focused on winning the regional but it's a tough task. Kaneland and Sycamore are very good teams, as are Genoa and St. Edward. There is no easy team in this regional. It's a major challenge.”
St. Edward held its own in the tough Metro Suburban West. The Green Wave are led at the net by senior CeCe Rapp and freshman Dominique Washington.
The Hampshire regional winner meets the Winnebago regional champ at Rochelle. Dixon is the top seed at Winnebago.
Class 1A
Chicagoland Jewish regional: Harvest Christian (19-14) begins its quest for a fourth straight Elite Eight berth at this regional in Deerfield. The Lions open regional play Tuesday against the winner of Monday's play-in game between Chicagoland Jewish and Elgin Academy. Faith Lutheran and Westminster Christian play the second semifinal.
Westminster is the sectional host, which also includes regional winners from Seton Academy, North Shore Country Day and Paw Paw. Harvest will host the supersectional.