Shanahan, BG come of age in quarterfinal win
Only a sophomore, Chris Shanahan wasn't on Buffalo Grove's varsity squad last season, when the Bison made their dramatic run to a second-place finish in the boys volleyball state tournament.
The Bison are sure happy they have him for this year's playoffs.
Shanahan shook off some early jitters to record a match high 8 kills as BG defeated Glenbard North 25-18, 25-21 in the state quarterfinals at Hoffman Estates.
The Bison, who breezed through Game 1 but had to rally from way behind in Game 2, move on to play Maine South, a winner in two games over Marist, at 11 a.m. Saturday in the semifinals.
Two-time defending state champion Wheaton Warrenville South will take on upstart St. Patrick in the other semifinal match at 10 a.m.
"I think they key tonight was that we stayed level-headed, even when we got down, and kept our emotions under control," said Buffalo Grove coach Matt Aiello.
"I was a little nervous at the beginning," said Shanahan, "but once I got out on the court I was able to shake that off and relax."
Senior outside hitter Chris Kosirog had 8 kills and senior setter Reamon Bisharat added 18 assists for a Glenbard North team that trailed 5-0 in Game 2, then rallied to grab a 19-14 lead only to see BG run off 11 of the final 13 points to win.
"I was excited," said Glenbard North coach Debra DiBenedetti of the Panthers' Game 2 comeback. "It took a little while, but I thought we finally had gotten back in the groove."
Glenbard jump servers Tyler Gustafson and Kosirog (2 aces) had BG on its heels in the second game, and for awhile it looked like a deciding third game was a certainty.
"We usually don't make errors on serve receive," said Aiello, "but they had 2 or 3 great jump servers, and they all served the ball differently."
Trailing by 5 late in Game 2, BG junior Nick Baronti started the rally with a kill, then an ace from BG (31-5) senior Chris Falknor and 2 Shanahan spikes helped give BG a 22-21 lead.
Two consecutive Glenbard North hitting errors and a final bock by freshman Sam Wacker gave the win to BG.
"I knew early on this season that this would be a special team," said DiBenedetti, as the Panthers bowed out after a stellar 2009 season that included 22 wins and the first regional and sectional championships in school history. "This (the advancement to the state tourney) was huge for our program."
Senior setter Dan Wichmann dished out 19 assists for the winners while Falknor, whose leadership was crucial during the BG rally, finished with 7 kills and 2 aces.
"This year is a little different for me," said Falknor, the only returning starter from last season's record setting team.
"Last year, it was like 'Wow, I'm at the state tournament.' This year, it's more all business - but they key is to come out and have fun."
And if BG can get past the Hawks, there's a strong possibilty of a rematch of last year's championship match against WWS - something the Bison, who lost three times last yeat to the Tigers, would definitely look forward to.
"It's not a matter of revenge or anything like that," said Falknor. "It's just a situation where we think about last year's (title) match and wonder what we could have done differently."