Home, school, volleyball — for Vander Wal it’s all relative
Timothy Christian senior volleyball player Abby Vander Wal said her high school “feels like home.”
No wonder. Twenty of her relatives have graduated from the Elmhurst school. Vander Wal and junior teammate Anna Stoll, her cousin, are last in line until the next generation enters elementary school.
The cast includes Vander Wal’s grandparents George and Carolyn Bosman, Timothy athletic director “Uncle” Jack LeGrand, Furman University basketball player Ben Vander Wal, and “Aunt” Kristi Bosman Vander Wal, the girls basketball program leader in scoring with 1,544 points. (Ben Vander Wal, Abby’s brother, ranks third for the boys.)
LeGrand said most of Abby’s kin will make the trip to Normal this weekend to watch the Trojans (38-2) compete in the Class 2A finals.
Abby will graduate early to take classes at the University of Texas, which she chose over Minnesota, Nebraska, Purdue and Stanford.
Vander Wal will study speech and language pathology at Texas. She was inspired by the therapist who worked with her youngest brother, Jake, who has Down syndrome and autism.
“The idea of giving back to a family because of the gifts she gave to me and my family with Jake, it’s just been my dream,” Vander Wal said.
A 6-foot-3 outside hitter and member of USA Volleyball’s Under-21 National Team, at the 2023 U19 World Championship in Croatia she was named MVP and best spiker.
Vander Wal enters Friday’s noon semifinal against Bloomington Central Catholic with 434 kills and 211 digs.
She’s a superstar who doesn’t big-league her teammates.
“She understands we need everybody to play at a high level and she helps bring other people there instead of just sitting back and saying, ‘I’m good, you guys figure it out,’” said Trojans coach Scott Piersma, seeking a first state title after placing third in 2015.
It’s Vander Wal’s first trip downstate. She won’t lack support toward a winning effort.
“It really would just be the cherry on top of everything I’ve had at Timothy,” she said. “I love the team we have right now and I want it so bad for the girls and for the team. And I really think we can do it.”
Reflection of greatness
In the Class 3A girls cross country final Saturday at Detweiller Park in Peoria, Willowbrook senior Amelie Ojeda placed fifth with a school-record time of 16 minutes, 40.6 seconds.
She became the first female Willowbrook runner to earn all-state honors on a 3-mile course. It also was her third time breaking her own school record, topping the 17:19.2 she ran Oct. 5 at Niles West.
“I didn’t want to leave that course with regrets,” said Ojeda, who on Wednesday committed to Northern Illinois University for track and cross country.
“It means a lot to me because it means that my hard work paid off and I was able to set the standard a little higher for Willowbrook and future teams.”
Coach Clyde Ware understands. Ojeda’s accomplishment came on the fourth anniversary of the death of Willowbrook’s only prior girls all-stater, Jenni (Goebel) Goldstein.
The former Warrior and Illinois-Chicago runner died of cancer on Nov. 9, 2020, at 38.
“It was a nice thing for one of our runners to follow someone great like Jenni Goebel,” Ware said.
“She left a legacy here at Willowbrook High School, and it’s just a reminder of what the community has to offer. And for Amelie to do this on that day is a reminder of what a great athlete she was.”
All-state flag
The Chicago Bears hosted the second girls flag football all-state dinner at Halas Hall on Friday.
It was the first all-state selection for flag football players as an official IHSA sport.
First-team all-state picks included: Ella Todd and Lily Mayer of Fremd, the first IHSA state champion; Maine South’s Aribella Spandiary; Round Lake’s Layah Glover; and Willowbrook’s Leigh Bernardo and Marli Smrz.
Second-team picks included: Hersey’s Ciara Brown, Jacobs’ Sophia Acot, Lakes’ Emily Ovaska, and Schaumburg’s Mia Phelps.
Third-team all-state picks included: Addison Trail’s Erin Parker, Antioch’s Abbigail Fuesting, Hersey’s Gabby Felman, St. Francis’ Allie Sheldon, Wauconda’s Isabelle Gerle, and West Aurora’s Sarahi Carlos.
Flag football began in 2021 with 21 Chicago Public School teams. There are 154 flag football programs statewide.
doberhelman@dailyherald.com