Prospect’s a winner in volleying for a cure

What a week it was for the programs of Prospect girls athletic director Jean Rezny and boys athletic director Tom Martindale.

First, the boys soccer team won the Mid-Suburban League championship.

On Friday, the football team staged a dramatic come-from-behind homecoming win over Rolling Meadows.

On Saturday, the girls cross country team won the MSL crown before the golf team gave Prospect its first state title in a girls sport.

And let’s not forget “Volley For the Cure” night on Tuesday, which filled the stands in the Jean Walker Field House and brought in earnings of $7,801 which are on the way to the Susan G. Komen fund.

It marked the fourth straight year the Knights volleyball program has earned more than $5,600 for breast cancer awareness ($5,600, $6,200 and $7,700 were the totals the previous three years).

Varsity coach Mike Reidy’s assistant Daria Schaffeld gets credit for organizing the big project.

“Eighty to 85 percent of the work is done by Daria,” Riedy said. “Every player and every coach in the program stepped up. The boys basketball team helped a ton along with the pom-poms, cheerleaders and drum line, who were all at the match. The entire boys soccer team was there and a lot of staff members from the school.”

The Madrigals, a co-ed singing group at Prospect, performed the national anthem for the event that has taken on a life of its own.

“I have no idea why it’s become so big here but I’m not complaining,” said Riedy, whose team defeated Elk Grove in two sets that evening. “People just go crazy. We sold about 950 T-shirts at $10. That was half of our profit. And we had $5,000 worth of raffle prizes.”

There was a time early in the season when it appeared the function might not be held this season.

“We told our coaches we would be very upset if we didn’t do it,” said senior outside hitter Sage Rebecca. “We started it our freshman year and we said we’d be mad if we couldn’t do it for our senior year. It’s something I always look forward to. It’s something we are known for and I hope it keeps going every season.”

“The girls just put their foot down and said we’re doing it,” Riedy said. “It was crazy. The girls just embraced it. We were still exhausted five days later from all the work putting it together.”

Pep assembly

The Jean Walker Field House was filled again at 2:20 p.m. on Monday for a pep assembly to honor Prospect’s 2011 Class 2A girls golf state title.

The players rode into the gym on golf carts, as four-year varsity player Christine Garmoe sat in the final one with the state championship trophy.

Coach Jim Hamann introduced all of his varsity players and a video was shown highlighting the Knights’ first girls sports team to win a state crown.

Prospect’s individual state champ Allison Walsh also spoke after receiving a standing ovation.

The senior ace will switch to a much larger ball in her next sport. She is a member of Prospect’s state-qualifying bowling team from last season.

Basketball

Dayton coach Archie Miller announced his four seniors as team captains and one of them is forward Luke Fabrizius (Hersey).

“All four of these young men exemplify what our program is about,” Miller said. “They have a wealth of experience, a lot of pride in the University of Dayton and our basketball program. They have done a great job in leading our team on and off the court from the first day I came here. They have embraced us as a new coaching staff and allowed us to push them. All of them will be an integral part of our season in so many ways.”

Fabrizius is a superb long-range shooter who has been plagued with various injuries throughout his career.

He has played 86 out of a possible 108 games in his first three years.

After recovering from a sprained ankle early in the 2010-11 season, he averaged 6.3 points and shot 46.3 percent (19-for-41) from behind the arc in the last 12 games of the year. For the entire 2010-11 campaign, he averaged 3.8 ppg and shot 34.5 percent (29-for-84) from three-point range.

Men’s soccer

Freshman Bobak Khalili (Schaumburg) and sophomore Cody Uidl (Maine West) are two defenders that have helped secure 6 shutouts on the season for the Oakton College men’s soccer team (13-1, 6-0) and allowed just 9 goals.

In the latest National Soccer Coaches Association of America poll, Oakton is No. 7.

Men’s cross country

The Illinois Skyway Collegiate Conference named Oakton sophomore team captain Martin Chavez (Maine West) as its “Men’s Cross Country Runner of the Week.” Chavez finished 15th out of 115 runners at the Eagle Invitational hosted by Benedictine University with his time of 27:32 in the 8K race.

타 North Central’s Matt Perez (Hoffman Estates) finished a team-best fourth while helping the Cardinals win the Brooks invite at Wisconsin-Oshkosh. He finished with a time of 25:07.

Women’s cross country

Augustana freshman Becca Sund (Palatine) continued her fine running in her initial collegiate season as she placed fifth in 23:34.9 in the Dr. Robert Tucker Loras Invitational. Another Augustana freshman, Stephanie Burbidge (Palatine) ran 24:31.9 that placed her 10th.

The Vikings finished second with 43 points, just 3 points behind the host Duhawks at the Dubuque Soccer Complex.

타 North Central’s Kala Bingham (Barrington) finished in 77th place and helped the Cardinals to a ninth-place finish in the Brooks Invite at Wisconsin-Oshkosh. She finished in a time of 23:25.

Soccer tryout

Chicago Fire Juniors North Gold Soccer Club out of Mount Prospect will be holding tryouts for their high school boys teams at 4 p.m. Saturday and 6 p.m. Sunday with check-in available 15 minutes before both tryouts. The tryouts will be held at St. John Lutheran Church in Mount Prospect at 1100 Linneman Road. For more information, please email cfjnorthgold@msn.com or call (847) 736-0399.

Feeder basketball

The St. Viator Junior Lions are holding their boys feeder tryouts on Oct. 29 and Nov. 6 for sixth through eighth grades. They can go to http://www.saintviator.com/ns/athletic/boys/basketball/2012feeder.pdf for details or contact Joe Rooney, boys feeder director, at (630) 202-0302 or at literal121@juno.com.

타 The Hersey girls feeder basketball tryouts will be held Nov. 6 and Nov. 13 at Hersey High School in the east gym. (enter door No. 32). All girls in sixth, seventh and eighth grade who are living in the Hersey attendance area are invited to try out. For further questions, contact coach Rob Pihl at robert.pihl@d214.org.

타 Please email Sports Notes items to jleusch@dailyherald.com or FAX to (847) 427-1173.