advertisement

Boys volleyball: St. Charles North dumps Glenbard North for regional crown

St. Charles North senior Danny Hamilton summed things up perfectly following the North Stars' 25-17, 25-19 boys volleyball regional championship triumph over Glenbard North Wednesday night in Bartlett.

"We definitely stepped up this game," said Hamilton, whose team earned its first regional title since the 2013 squad placed third in the state.

"I don't know what got into us. This is one of my personal rivals. We know a few of the guys on their team."

Hamilton knew what area of play helped key the North Stars' upset of second-seeded Glenbard North (25-6).

"Our blocking was unstoppable," said Hamilton, who joined teammates Jack Kolodziej (4 blocks) and Drew Lanz (2 blocks) to form a human wall at the net. "That's something we've been working on all season. Clearly, it paid off in this game and this is the game that really matters."

The third-seeded North Stars (23-14), who will play Rockford Jefferson in the 6:30 p.m. sectional semifinal at Lake Park on Friday, seized control early, jumping out to leads of 3-0, 6-2 and 14-9 before scoring the final 4 points in the opening set.

Hamilton recorded 4 of his team-leading 8 kills in the first set, supported by Lanz and Koppang. Hamilton, Lanz and junior captain Danny Throop also added service aces while Kolodziej added a pair of blocks.

"Blocking and serving - we talked about those things (before the match)," said North Stars coach Todd Weimer. "If we serve tough and get them out of system a little bit then we can block a little bit better. We've been trying really hard to serve tough because that helps with the blocking."

Glenbard North, led by Brandon Gorzela (6 kills, 2 aces), Tee White (7 kills), and Eric Tripp (5 kills), took a brief 2-1 lead in the second set on a powerful ace from Gorzela.

However, that turned out to be the Panthers' lone lead of the night.

From there, the North Stars went on a 14-6 run, capped by Hamilton's middle block, to take a 15-8 lead that swelled to 24-16.

Glenbard North fought off three match points before Hamilton's right-side kill applied the finishing touch on a superb performance by the North Stars.

"We just played lights out - phenomenally," said Weimer. "These guys are playing really well right now. They're playing with a high level of confidence and it's hard to stop that. They're playing great at the right time."

Junior 3-sport athlete Sean O'Leary (soccer, basketball, volleyball) added all-out hustle and defensive determination from his libero position.

"I couldn't ask for better teammates to get me to my full potential," said O'Leary. "This is awesome."

On the flip side, it was a frustrating night for the Panthers.

"In the first set, we kind of broke down as a team," said Panthers coach Dedra DeBenedetti. "We just weren't playing as we've been playing. We weren't anticipating, we weren't communicating, and we weren't adjusting.

"We had a very successful season. It's just hard to see it end so soon."

  Danny Hamilton of St. Charles North, right, taps the ball past Bryan Nguyen, middle, and Brandon Gorzela of Glenbard North during Wednesday's regional final at Bartlett. Joe Lewnard/jlewnard@dailyherald.com
  Tommy Koppang of St. Charles North, middle, directs a kill attempt between Brandon Gorzela, left, and Shivam Savani of Glenbard North. Joe Lewnard/jlewnard@dailyherald.com
  Tommy Koppang of St. Charles North leaps for the ball on a kill attempt during Wednesday's regional final against Glenbard North at Bartlett. Joe Lewnard/jlewnard@dailyherald.com
  Hatem Ali, left, and Brandon Gorzela of St. Charles North block the ball at the net during Wednesday's regional final against Glenbard North at Bartlett. Joe Lewnard/jlewnard@dailyherald.com
Article Comments
Guidelines: Keep it civil and on topic; no profanity, vulgarity, slurs or personal attacks. People who harass others or joke about tragedies will be blocked. If a comment violates these standards or our terms of service, click the "flag" link in the lower-right corner of the comment box. To find our more, read our FAQ.