Winkelman sparks St. Charles North

After watching her team overcome numerous unforced errors while rallying for a 26-24 opening-game victory, St. Charles North girls volleyball coach Lindsay Trudell was hoping things would settle down in the second game.

"We made 11 errors in Game 1," said Trudell. "I told them between games that if you can cut your errors in half, we'd be in good shape."

Her players took the advice to heart, committing just 5 hitting errors on the way to a match-clinching, 25-19 second-game triumph over Upstate Eight Conference rival Neuqua Valley (2-1, 0-1).

"It was a nice way to start the conference season," said Trudell, whose team's only Upstate Eight defeat came at the hands of the Wildcats a year ago.

While the North Stars' main hitters -- 6-foot-2 middle Gretchen Giesler (5 kills, 2 solo blocks, 5 block assists), Carla Tietz (4 kills, 3 digs) and Rachel Huber (4 kills, 2 block assists) -- played key roles, senior libero Caitlin Winkelman provided the defensive spark.

Winkelman sacrificed her body repeatedly, coming up with a team-high 12 digs, several floor burns and the praise of her coach.

"That was probably the best she has played this year," said Trudell. "The best thing about Caitlin is her aggressive attitude. She'll run from side to side, front to back, and she doesn't mind hitting the ground.

"I think she came out of her shell a little bit tonight. I saw her talking to other people and stepping up as a leader."

Winkelman felt her team begin to come together after the North Stars jumped out to an 18-9 lead in the second game.

"We're still trying to figure out lineups and stuff, but today was the first time it really showed that we were jelling," said the 3-sport athlete who also plays basketball and soccer.

The first game featured 12 ties -- the last coming at 24-all before a left-side kill by Huber and Neuqua Valley hitting error pushed the North Stars (5-3, 1-0) over the top.

It was a sign of things to come for the Wildcats, who were led by Michelle Madeja (5 kills), Nikki Federico (4 kills) and Shannon McGowan (16 digs).

"This was so uncharacteristic for us," said Neuqua coach Kelly Simon. "We are a great serving team and we had no aces tonight.

"We had nearly 90 attack attempts and about 20 kills with more errors than kills so our hitting efficiency was a negative. In the first game alone, we gave up 19 of their 26 points on our errors."