Girls volleyball: Wheaton Warrenville South tops St. Charles North in 3

Rebecca Bellows and Lauren Coyne can sure pack the punch on their swings.

The power behind them is paying off so far this season for Wheaton Warrenville South.

"They're competitors and they're going to go ahead and put a swing on a ball," WW South coach Bill Schreier said following the Tigers' 25-21, 18-25, 25-17 victory over St. Charles North on Tuesday. "They're going to go ahead and challenge and block it If necessary."

"We made some adjustments with Becca just reminding her of some of the shots that she does have available," Schreier continued. "I thought that was kind of a turning point there that she was frustrated on her block because she was just going at it and tooling off it."

To Schreier, sometimes, when a team has got a few hitters that can swing pretty well, "it gets to be that 'guy's mentality."

"[Where] they want to bounce everything. We've had some pretty successful guys programs here, and it's still about the fact that the point doesn't count any extra if you hit it into the floor; if you hit it off someone's hands," Schreier explained. "It's about not having to go into an extended rally is really what it comes down to. So, I think that that's a nice piece to go ahead and see happen with those two, especially this early in the season."

Bellows, a sophomore outside hitter who had 10 kills to pace the Tigers (8-2, 1-0), points to Schreier's emphasis on transitioning "so you can get a full approach and hit hard."

"Doing that, and then getting a good swing off it and the energy of everybody, just makes it so much better after getting a good kill or a big swing," added Coyne, a freshman, who had five kills and three blocks.

"I think that it was a good adjustment [from competitive club to varsity]," Coyne said. "Everyone was so welcoming, so it wasn't like I was just the new kid walking on [to a team] to a bunch of people that didn't want me there. Everyone has been really welcoming and very helpful through the program figuring out how everything works."

After trading the first two sets, the Tigers settled in their groove down the stretch in the third to pull away from the scrappy North Stars (4-4).

"It's still a learning experience for us. We do have a lot coming back from the spring, especially in comparison to other teams, but this group hasn't played together," Schreier said. "So, as you start to adjust pieces in place, how is that going to play out? We're learning ... it's going to be a work in progress. We're going to have these up and down moments. We're just trying to iron that out a little bit."

The North Stars were paced by Katie Scherer's seven kills. They also received solid performances from senior middle Riley Moreno, who had numerous big blocks up front, and helpful supplemental play from junior outside hitter Kayla Davern and junior setter Jessica Parker.

"It was great that we were able to get our middles the ball more often," St. Charles North coach Lindsey Hawkins said. "[Moreno] has always been a great blocker, so she swung the momentum our way a couple times.

"[The North Stars] showed a lot of what they're capable of. [WW South is] a fantastic team. I think their setter [Darby Harris] makes them fantastic. To be able to hang with them, beat them in one set, I think that showed a lot of the kind of potential we have."