McGinnis shows his versatility

The Glenbard West volleyball players know they can count on senior libero Kevin McGinnis in a pinch.

McGinnis was All-Area last year as and he’s been playing libero at that level this year as well.

But at the recent Springfest Tournament at Glenbard East, McGinnis was pressed into action in a different role.

The Hilltoppers won their pool and advanced to the semifinals thanks in large part to McGinnis, who then became a utility man for coach Christine Giunta.

After defeating Benet and Homewood-Flossmoor in pool play, the Hilltoppers lost Game 1 25-14 to host Glenbard East, and it was there that Giunta decided that her lineup needed a boost.

McGinnis came to the rescue, moving to outside hitter.

“And he took over the match,” Giunta said. “He came up with 8 digs and scored on 7 kills to lead us to a three-set win.”

McInnis went back and forth between the two positions in the semifinals and the finals, two more three-set matches , but the weary Hilltoppers lost to both St. Francis and then to Neuqua Valley in the third-place game.

But it’s understandable that Glenbard West began to wilt at the end of the day.

Four of the Hilltoppers’ five matches went to three games, and every game was close, so they played 14 long games.

But Giunta is happy with the team’s 3-2 record for the tournament.

“This was our first time ever to make the Gold Division of a tournament,” Giunta said. “And they just lost their legs. Now they know what advancing in the championship division in a major tournament is like.”

McGinnis finished with 53 digs on the day, and Adam Lepold led the Hilltoppers with 43 kills and 34 blocks.

The ‘new’ guy:Henry Cheatham has developed into a big hitter on the right side for Naperville North.A reserve last year, the 6-foot-4 Cheatham, who plays on the Huskies football team in the fall, excelled during pre-season tryouts and won the spot. #147;Now that he knows that the right-side position is his, Henry#146;s playing with more confidence,#148; said coach Nate Bornancin. #147;He wants the ball more. He#146;s more aggressive.#148;The Huskies won the recent Bison Battle at Buffalo Grove and Cheatham joined teammate Danny Boryca on the all-tournament team.#147;Henry hasn#146;t had a bad match yet,#148; Bornancin said. #147;He#146;s been finding the seams through the block and he#146;s done a great job of hitting it off the blockers#146; hands. He has a great array of shots. The job he#146;s doing on the right side, when put together with Shane Witmer on the left side, is opening things up so we can get our middles more involved.#148;The emergence of another scoring threat came at a good time for the Huskies who found out that 6-foot-6 junior outside hitter Spencer Sauter will be out for a month after suffering a sprained ankle at practice. They#146;re blazing:Addison Trail is off to a 10-1 start, a record that includes winning the championship at of the recent Rolling Meadows Invite, and the Blazers are doing it the old-fashioned way. They#146;re playing team volleyball.#147;We don#146;t have any big stars,#148; coach Tom Hubner said. #147;But it has been a pleasure watching this group develop into a cohesive, tightly knit team. They figured out that volleyball is a team game and they know how to play together. Last year we were a bunch of individuals, and this year there#146;s a flow to the game. They trust each other.#148; Five players have been sharing the hitting duties, outsides Armin Trgo and Dan Florez, middles Blazej Sadowski (the tallest of the group at 6-foot-4) and Mike Gontarek and right side Mario Rojba.Libero Tom Connelly is keeping the ball off the floor, while setter Jack Andrews provides the leadership and spreads the ball around.#148;#147;These are good kids and fun to be around,#148; Hubner said. #147;We#146;re always laughing over something crazy they#146;re doing.#148; More success for Lancers:With five starters returning from a team that won 30 matches, Lake Park had high expectations in the preseason, and the Lancers are pretty much where they figured they would be at 12-2 and looking like a viable contender for the state Elite Eight.Central to the Lancers#146; success, which includes winning the championship of the Conant tournament, has been senior setter Matt McCown, the third McCown brother to play volleyball for Lake Park. #147;Matt has been a rock for us all season,#148; said Lake Park coach Brad Baker. #147;At 6-foot-2 he has good size for a setter, and he#146;s been around the game so long, he really understands it. His decision-making gives the hitters the greatest opportunity to put the ball away.#148;Baker knows that having McCown at setter is like having a second coach on the floor.#147;He knows what he#146;s supposed to do and he knows what everyone else is doing. When you have a player like that, it makes everything run more smoothly,#148; Baker said.The most frequent recipients of McCown#146;s passes have been senior right-side Trace Szczygiel, the team#146;s best offensive player and senior outside-hitter Eddie Keesecker.Keesecker, a reserve last year, is a tremendous leaper who has, at times, been unstoppable.#147;Eddie is taller and vastly improved over last year,#148; Baker said. #147;Nobody knows him when we go into a match, but they certainly know him by the time the match is over.#148;