Farmer plants seeds of Glenbard West win
Glenbard West senior setter Sean Farmer has some big shoes to fill trying to replace the graduated Paulie Bischoff, who led the Hilltoppers to the past two state championships.
That doesn't mean he isn't capable of big feats.
The 6-foot-3 Farmer showcased some impressive skills Wednesday night in leading the host Hilltoppers to a 25-15, 25-21 victory over 2016 state quarterfinalist Lincoln-Way East in Glen Ellyn.
Farmer doled out 19 assists to go with 5 kills and 5 service points. He also had at least a part of 5 blocks.
"He's a great setter," Glenbard West junior right side hitter Alec Pierce said. "He's pretty much as good as Paulie, I think.
"He's a really smart setter and he knows where to move the ball. He can read the block and he knows when to take it over."
Farmer took the game over in the second set just when it appeared the Griffins had some life. The visitors led 17-13 before the Hilltoppers (3-0) went on a closing 12-4 run, during which Farmer had 5 assists, 2 blocks and kill.
He also served the final four points, capping the match by setting up Pierce's game-high seventh kill.
"They're a really good team," Farmer said. "I thought the first set we executed really well. They didn't get any runs. I thought we blocked well too."
Farmer, who played defensive specialist on last year's unbeaten state championship team, spread the opportunities around. Matthew Scruggs spiked 5 kills while fellow middle hitter JT Ardell and Robbie Murphy each had 4.
"He is a different kind of setter," Glenbard West coach Christine Giunta-Mayer said of Farmer. "He's got his own flair, his own style, but he's extremely intelligent and it's helping him a ton.
"He had a bunch of blocks today and that's because he is a thinker. What he has to make up for in his size, he makes up for with his head and it's definitely something that we really appreciate."
Farmer appreciates the opportunity to take over the reins of a state championship program and the responsibility that goes with it.
"It's tough," Farmer said. "It's a lot of pressure but I've got to rise to it.
"There's a lot of expectations, not only for me filling (Bischoff's) shoes but for our team this year. The teams in the past have kind of established what the expectation is and so we kind of have to fulfill that."
So far, so good for the Hilltoppers, who extended their winning streak to 62 games and gave Giunta-Mayer her 299th career victory.
Ian Piet led Lincoln-Way East with 6 kills.