'A great night of volleyball'
Naperville North will host an unprecedented night of Illinois high school girls volleyball tonight.
All four teams in the Class 4A sectional are nationally ranked by PrepVolleyball.com -- Naperville Central (No. 16), Naperville North (25), Benet (48) and Downers Grove South (67).
They'll duke it out tonight until the last team is standing thanks to the Illinois High School Association's controversial compressed schedule that's squeezing all sectional matches into one night in order to cut down on downstate travel time that's increased with the number of classes doubled to four this year.
It's Naperville North (32-4) vs. Benet (34-3) at 5 p.m., then Naperville Central (33-4) vs. Downers South (31-6) at 6 p.m. The final is set for 7:15 p.m., but the second and third matches could be pushed back by what promises to be a night of long rallies.
"We could play great and still lose," Benet coach Brad Baker said. "Any one of these four teams has a shot, and we like our chances."
"I think we're ready," Naperville North coach Jennifer Urban said. "We've had two good weeks of practice. I think we're ready to go. These girls are anxious to play in sectionals on our home court.
"I'm getting a lot of e-mails from people who are just volleyball fans, that are not affiliated with any of the teams, that are going to be there. It should be pretty crazy."
There's been talk for years about the competitive unfairness of the IHSA's geographic representation philosophy in the state playoffs. The newly created system of playing two matches in one night has only increased the debate about the fairness of the format.
Such discussion is sure to continue in the future, but tonight the focus will be on the players on the court.
"Now it's their time to play, and I'm just excited to let them do that," Naperville Central coach Brie Isaacson said. "I'm just ready to go because I'm sort of sick of the anticipation now. Let's just go."
"I'm certainly ready," Downers South coach Colleen Reagan said. "I'm excited. The kids have come a long way this year. Really, in the last couple of weeks it seems like it's all coming together for us. I like where we're at. It's going to be a great night of volleyball."
But the harsh reality looms that only one of the four 30-plus win teams will be alive in the tournament after tonight.
"Unfortunately I realize the odds aren't that great because only one is walking away, but I don't think there's any shame with whoever doesn't make it because we've all had great seasons," Isaacson said.
Elsewhere, powerful DuPage Valley Conference champion Wheaton Warrenville South (32-5) will do battle with York (23-13) in the Lake Park sectional semifinals. The victor will go against either St. Charles North or St. Charles East in the final.
It's a big night for St. Francis (34-3) in the program's attempt to win its ninth state championship. The Spartans could face rival Rosary, which defeated them twice during the Suburban Catholic Conference season, in the Class 3A Riverside-Brookfield sectional final.
First, though, the Spartans will have to get past Wheaton Academy (25-12) and slugging outside hitter Maggie Johnson in the semifinals. St. Francis coach Peg Kopec has scouted the Warriors and said her team will be prepared for Johnson.
"She hits out of the back row and she hits very hard, but we practice against that," Kopec said.
As for Wheaton Academy, the Warriors are excited about the opportunity to face the state power.
"Our pattern shows we've stepped up our play when we've had to," Wheaton Academy coach D.A. Nichols said. "The biggest thing for us going in is playing confidently and not looking that we're playing one of the best programs by far in the state that's nationally ranked. We have to play our game."
Class 2A finds Lisle (14-19) taking on Latin in the Luther North sectional semifinals. The winner will play Westmont or St. Benedict in the final.
A Lisle-Westmont final would pit the co-champions of the Interstate Eight North against each other. They split a pair of matches during the conference schedule with each winning in a sweep on the other's home court.
In Class 1A, Immaculate Conception (26-11) and emerging junior middle hitter Danielle Remy take an eight-match winning streak into its Serena sectional semifinal against Newark. The winner will meet Indian Creek or Morgan Park Academy in the final.