Huskies show they don't have to lean on Colleen
Naperville North proved it's more than All-America Colleen Ward.
The Huskies combined a team effort with 17 kills by Ward to knock off previously unbeaten Wheaton Warrenville South 21-25, 25-16, 25-21 in the championship match of the DuPage Area Girls Volleyball Tournament Saturday afternoon at Wheaton North.
"We had a lot of people contribute," Huskies coach Jennifer Urban said. "I'm very proud of these girls because they're finding ways to get it done."
Strong defense, tough serving and a minimum of mistakes helped the Huskies (14-1) overcome the potent firepower of its DuPage Valley Conference rival.
"It shows how we play really well as a team," Ward said. "We're not just good at one thing. We can put it all together."
"I think our team did just a really good job of coming in with no hesitation and being aggressive and having enough confidence to overcome that we were the underdogs," Naperville North libero Christine Wu said.
WW South's Becca Zlabis smacked a match-high 20 kills.
The Tigers (14-1) registered 39 kills to Naperville North's 30 but committed more errors than the Huskies.
"The big thing that pops up is the fact that we made 44 errors," WW South coach Bill Schreier said. "You can't do that against quality opponents."
The Tigers scored the last 4 points of Game 1 to claim the opener on a kill by Dayana Rodriguez. Then Ward unleashed 11 kills in Game 2 to send the match to a third game.
Ward's first kill of Game 3 gave Naperville North a 13-8 lead. The Tigers drew within 22-21 on a Zlabis kill, but a serving error and back-to-back aces by Jordan Pappas delivered the title to the Huskies.
Sandburg (8-2) posted a 25-20, 35-37, 25-15 win versus Downers Grove North (8-4) to take third in the quality 16-team field. Terese Byrne had 9 kills in the loss.
"It's great to play this caliber of competition," Downers North coach Laura Johnwick said. "Unfortunately against Wheaton Warrenville South we played scared (in a 25-16, 25-15 semifinal loss). Then against Sandburg we struggled to put the ball away for some reason."
Naperville Central (12-3) took fifth with a 25-20, 25-23 triumph over Downers Grove South (8-3) behind Emily McGee's 10 kills.
"Overall, I'm happy with their performance, " Naperville Central coach Brie Isaacson said of her Redhawks. "I think they're really stepping it up."
Neuqua Valley (6-4) finished seventh with a 30-28, 25-21 win against Prairie Ridge (8-7) paced by Brittany Mikottis' 6 kills.
"We're a much better team leaving the tournament than when we came," Wildcats coach Kelly Simon said. "That growth is very evident. These are some great teams. Being in a higher caliber tournament is what we need to do."