Boys volleyball: Lutz sparks Stevenson to 3rd at Warren

Stevenson senior outside hitter Karl Lutz rose to the occasion several times throughout Saturday's match against Glenbrook South.

Playing a position more suited for taller players, the 5-foot-10 Lutz is accustomed to soaring past expectations. Three years ago, Lutz was a late arrival to the sport, starting his volleyball career on Stevenson's freshmen "B" team.

Since then, Lutz has slowly climbed his way up through Stevenson's program to become a go-to player on a team with championship aspirations.

"I work hard and don't see my size as a disadvantage," Lutz said. "I work hard to get my vertical up. I had to have a higher vertical because of all the tall guys. I worked hard in the gym. There's other ways you can fight.

"I joined volleyball and fell in love with the sport, joined club in my sophomore year and refined my craft. I put a lot of work in."

Lutz pounded down 8 kills to spark Stevenson to a 2-0 victory over Glenbrook South in the third-place game of the Gold Bracket in the 19th Annual Warren Blue Devils Volleyball Invitational.

The Patriots (12-2) bounced back from a loss to eventual tourney champion Marist in the semifinals after opening the tourney with three consecutive victories, including a 2-1 triumph over Oak Park-River Forest on Saturday. Sam Nuudel finished with 6 kills in the win over Glenbrook South. Marist defeated New Trier to claim the Gold Bracket title.

"I'm really proud of them to get a win in that match considering we played them a week ago," Stevenson coach Eric Goolish said. "They've improved and are playing well. It was a good test for us, just to show we're engaged in the fifth match of a long tournament. After losing, they came back and played well. That's a good sign. I'm really happy for the guys. We're adjusting in games, which is good."

Lutz showed off a diverse game throughout the highly competitive 24-team tournament, flashing a 36-inch vertical to go with an energy that lifted his teammates in tense moments.

"I was very proud of how we played in the tournament," Lutz said. "We had amazing defense and spread the ball throughout the court and ran tempo. We found motivation after our loss. We're striving to be the best we can be. We want to go for a state title. We played well against some of the strong teams, like Marist. I have high hopes for our team. I've had a lot of fun this season."

Goolish said his players feed off Lutz's infectious personality on the court.

"He's small, but he's bouncy," Goolish said. "At least that's what the guys on the team say about him. That's one way to describe him. He has a quick arm and is learning different shots and definitely surprises us. The guys all rally around him and like watching him make plays."

Glenbrook South, which lost to rival and eventual state champion Glenbrook North (5-3) in a sectional title match last season, rode the strong arm of Cooper Evans to a strong showing. Evans, a Loyola recruit, displayed a powerful jump serve and nearly willed his team to a comeback in the second game before falling to the Patriots for the second time this season. Against Stevenson, Evans had 13 kills, 6 digs and 2 aces to raise his season total to 81 kills and 25 aces.

"It was a good beginning of the year tournament for us," said Glenbrook South coach Annie Kotsadam. "We did a lot of learning. I thought we played our best volleyball this morning against Hinsdale Central. We played some tough competition all day. Stevenson plays us hard. They're a good and scrappy team."

Wheaton North defeated Metea Valley to earn seventh place in the Gold Bracket, while Maine South won the Silver Flight for 9th place. Lakes captured the Silver Flight for 17th place.

The Falcons lost to New Trier earlier on Saturday, but knocked off the Mustangs in two games.

"We felt good on paper against New Trier, but it turned out the team that played better, harder and clicked more efficiently came out the winners," Wheaton North coach John Noe said. "It was good to see this type of competition so early in the season."

Metea Valley had a depleted rotation due to several players injured, losing all three matches on Saturday.

"We toughed it out today, but we played really good competition in Marist and Oak Park-River Forest," Metea Valley coach Darren Honda said. "We're a good team and have some depth. We were able to get a lot of kids who normally don't play as much. This experience will help us."