It all adds up for Curry, Vernon Hills in win at round-robin tournament

Vernon Hills boys volleyball coach Chris Curry is an English teacher.

English teachers and math typically do not mix well, but an exception was made after the Cougars lost to Libertyville in three games Saturday to open the Glenbrook North Tournament.

"The math is real simple," Curry told his team. "We have to beat everybody. Let's go."

Four victories later, Vernon Hills (21-4) had won the round-robin tournament.

Following the Libertyville loss, the Cougars found the proper emotional level for tournament play.

"You can't play five straight games as wound up as we were against Libertyville," Curry said. "Volleyball is such a game of emotion, but we played point by point. We settled down and put consistent pressure on the other team. That kind of steady demeanor will carry you through a five-match tournament."

Vernon Hills played one of its best matches of the season against Glenbrook North and scored a 25-20, 25-22 victory. Keegan Harris and Ernie Choi had 11 and 5 kills, respectively, and the duo only had two hitting errors.

"I felt like that match was the culmination of all the things we're trying to do," Curry said.

The Cougars followed that up with victories over St. Charles North (25-14, 25-15) and Carmel (25-11, 25-16). Vernon Hills closed out the tournament with a surprisingly easy victory against Lincoln-Way East (25-13, 25-17).

Harris led the way with 12 kills, and juniors Mike Robinson (8 kills) and Pat Stone (8 kills) also had strong efforts.

"We really let loose on a tall, strong Lincoln-Way East team," Curry said.

Vernon Hills (6-0) stayed perfect in North Suburban Conference play Tuesday with a 25-21, 25-17 home victory over Lake Forest. The Cougars and Stevenson, the last two undefeated teams in conference play, will meet next Thursday at Vernon Hills.

The start of the Lake Forest match was a debacle. The Cougars committed 11 hitting errors and 5 serving errors in the first game, most of them early on. At one point, Vernon Hills trailed 17-10.

"One of the parents is a doctor and he was seriously concerned about my blood pressure," Curry joked.

Stone went on a nine-point service run to close out the game. During this stretch, Harris and senior Alex Tartakovsky came through with key kills.

Many ways to attack: Like Vernon Hills, part of what makes Stevenson (21-2, 6-0) so tough is the number of players that can contribute.

When the opposition focuses on outside hitters Kyle Buck and Brad Feiger, it gives players such as junior Travis Naftzger a chance to shine.

"He's (increased) his production over the last week and a half," coach Tim Crow said. "His transition from the offensive end to blocking has gotten a lot better."

Junior John Baader has demonstrated his ability to attack from the back row.

"He knows his role and that we need to utilize him as a weapon," Crow said. "I think we've gotten him the ball more consistently and not forcing it outside all the time."

Sophomore opposite Zach Kravitz is starting to make a bigger contribution.

"He gives us a little more balance on the right side," Crow said. "He's done a good job blocking and getting some touches on the ball."

Closing in: Youthful Mundelein (16-13, 3-4) is four victories away from reaching 20.

"Our goal at the beginning of the season was to get to 20 wins, and we are on a path to do that," coach George Dressen Jr. said. "We're about where I was hoping we would be this year."

John McElligott and Mitchell Baumgartner have impressed offensively. Setter Andrew Roscoe has elevated his game over the past two weeks since the Mustangs shifted to a 6-1 offense.

Brian Chin and Tyler Emde have helped get the Mustangs into their offense from the back row.

"Our serve-receive has been phenomenal," Dressen said.