Fremd passes MSL West tests for third straight title

The Fremd boys volleyball team took to the court Tuesday night knowing it had to win to grab at least a share of the Mid-Suburban West title for a fourth straight season.

And more importantly, they had to be victorious in two games to earn their third consecutive berth in the MSL title match.

Mission, on both fronts, accomplished.

The Vikings will host East champion Buffalo Grove in next Wednesday's MSL championship tilt after a resounding 25-16, 25-19 victory over Conant .

Fremd and Palatine both finished the year with 8-2 West division records, but the Vikings claimed the crown on the basis of a game winning percentage tiebreaker.

The race was so close that the Pirates, who defeated Hoffman Estates in two games Tuesday, would have taken the title had Fremd dropped even one game to Conant.

"The guys were pretty down after last week," said Fremd coach Curt Pinley, referring to a loss to Palatine last Thursday that knotted up the West division and put the Vikings' chances for another title in jeopardy. "But once they realized that we held the tiebreaker, I think they want back to practice and rededicated their season."

"They came out ready to play tonight."

Senior middle Brian Allen led the way for Fremd (18-9, 8-2) with 7 kills and 4 aces while setter Sean Engelbreit (49-of-49, 15 assists) excelled for the Cougars in defeat.

"The home team really came out and took control tonight," said Conant coach Steven Peter. "We were feeling confident after a big win over Barrington, but they got a big cushion in both games and that helped them push through."

Fremd junior outside hitterPeter Ninchich credited the bitter loss to Palatine with helping motivate them to the win over the Cougars (11-16, 3-6).

"We wanted to extend the Fremd tradition of appearing in the MSL championship game," said Ninchich, "so we took the mistakes we made in the Palatine game, learned from them, and came out tonight prepared to succeed."

Fremd took command of both games midway through with big runs. In Game 1, it was Allen serving up three consecutive aces to help the Vikings open an insurmountable lead.

In Game 2, consecutive block kills from Allen, senior outside hitter Jeff Chappell (match high 9 kills), then Allen again broke open an 11-11 tie and propelled the Vikings to the match triumph.

"We were anxious to play this game tonight," said Allen. "It doesn't completely erase the loss to Palatine, because they're our rivals, but it makes it hurt a lot less."

Senior setter Steve Maring (50-of-50, 20 assists) made a big contribution to the win for Fremd, who will be facing BG for the MSL crown for the third straight season.

The Bison won at Fremd two seasons ago while the Vikings returned the favor in Buffalo Grove last year.

"It seems that neither team can win it on their home court," joked Pinley. "We hope to reverse that trend this year."

"We're motivated to play Buffalo Grove," added Ninchich. "We've worked hard all season for this."

Palatine d. Hoffman Estates: The Pirates wrapped up Mid-Suburban West play with a 25-14, 25-23 victory over the Hawks.

Schaumburg d. Barrington: Jason Wojcik delivered 7 blocks, Glenn Frost had 7 kills and Pat O'Connel had 12 setting assists to help Schaumburg past Conant 25-18, 27-25.

Buffalo Grove d. Wheeling: The Bison completed an unbeaten run through the MSL East by topping Wheeling 25-7, 25-21. Leading the way for BG (23-5) were Chris Shanahan (7 kills), Nick Baronti (5 kills), Alex Kob (3 service aces), Lukas Karch (40-for-40 setting, 21 assists). Wheeling got 4 kills from Kevin Leska and 6 digs from Scott Lunardini.

Hersey d. Elk Grove: Matt Cayton went 12-for-12 serving and had 14 assists, 2 digs and a kill to help the Huskies past the Grenadiers 25-9, 25-14.

Rolling Meadows d. Prospect: Senior Scott Shewmon produced 11 kills and 8 blocks for the Mustangs and teammate Brian Bourn had 31 assists to help Rolling Meadows outlast the Knights 25-19, 12-25, 25-21. Mike Hammersley led the way for Prospect with 13 kills, and Kevin Wolter had 34 assists and Sean Baltowski had 14 digs.