Boys volleyball: Stevenson continues its winning ways at Day 1 of Warren tourney

Stevenson junior outside hitter Sam Nuudel stayed focused throughout an grueling first game against Maine South on Friday night.

Even with the Patriots facing game point numerous times, Nuudel remained in control.

But Nuudel turned it up a notch when his team needed him the most, delivering a kill and subsequent ace to lead the Patriots to a thrilling game one victory. From there, the Patriots rolled in the second game, scoring wins of 35-33, 25-18 over the Hawks in the first day of the 19th Annual Warren Blue Devil Volleyball Invitational.

The Patriots (10-1) defeated Young in their first game to win both of their matches in the 24-team tourney.

"It was point for point in that first set, but I think our team just wanted it more," Nuudel said. "They had us at game point many times, but we kept fighting and took the game on the serve. During that first set, I knew I had to get the ball and put it down on the court. I started jumping higher and making smarter shots."

Nuudel finished with 12 kills in the victory over the Hawks (2-3), closing out the match with a kill to end the second game.

"We're all hoping for a special season," Nuudel said. "It's been a fun season. I have a lot of friends on the team, including my older brother."

Stevenson coach Eric Goolish said his players showed a lot of resolve to pull out the game one victory, led by the play of the 6-foot-3 Nuudel.

"We were up against the wall so many times," Goolish said. "We were patient. We served the ball really well. We were very balanced in terms of a lot of guys scoring an equal amount, and a lot of guys chipped in. Sam had one of his best games. He's got abilities to go on runs. He can make pretty remarkable plays. When he does that and plays consistent, we're at our best."

Maine South coach Garrett Fechner credited the Patriots for coming together to pull out the hard-fought victory. The Hawks (2-3) defeated Young in their opening match Friday.

"We played to our strengths and had nice ball control and have some nice size on our team, but Stevenson is one of the better teams defensively anybody will see," he said. "Our serve-receive wasn't there, and Stevenson took advantage. We'll try and bounce back on Saturday."

Warren and Metea Valley hooked up for one of the best matches of the night, ending the tourney in front of an overflow crowd. The Mustangs (7-1) won the first game 25-12, lost 21-25 and pulled out a 25-23 win.

"It was a good match," Metea Valley coach Darren Honda said. "The first set we played very strong, but the second set somewhere in the middle we lost some focus and energy. In the third one, we figured it out and played better defense and blocking."

Metea Valley senior setter Aidan Murphy piled up 25 assists to help the Mustangs stop the late push by the Blue Devils. Junior outside hitter Bartosz Chmielewski led the Mustangs with 17 kills.

"We came out firing in the first set and handled them pretty good but we fell off in the second set and got flat," Murphy said. "Warren is a great team with a great middle and great hitters. Toward the end of the third set, we turned it up and got some blocks and everything came together."

Warren coach Yun Chen said his team battled back to nearly pull off a big comeback win. The Blue Devils beat Huntley earlier in the tourney.

"Metea Valley is a very good team," Chen said. "We missed a few serves in the first set and they went on a run. The second set we played better. They started chipping away and started believing. We just had to stay in the moment, one good pass, touch and swing. That was definitely a fun final set. I really enjoyed watching the match. It was a good competitive match."