Scouting Cook County and Lake County boys volleyball
The high school boys volleyball season starts this week. Here’s a look at what to expect in Cook County and Lake County.
ANTIOCH
The Seqouits are led by senior all-Northern Lake County Conference setter Ryan Jilly. They also have experience from seniors Brian Vo, Angel Anguiano and Ethan Espinoza to go with newcomers including senior Hunter Williams, junior Fateen Kokumo, sophomores Colin Fisher and Evan Kobb and freshman Justin Niznik.
"We want to be competitive in the conference,“ said coach Jamie Atkinson. ”We are playing a lot of younger players but they have club experience. We want to see how we match up size wise. We want to play more teams out west because we are playing a lot of years in the Rockford regionals.“
BARRINGTON
The Broncos, regional champs a year ago, return seniors Sam Grozdic (Northern Kentucky), Carson Skinner, Matt Louis (MIT), Oliver Halvey, John Sun, Eli Rodda and Jimmy Lau along with juniors Aidan Gilmore and Robert Jensen.
Newcomers are seniors Eric Zastawny and Tyler Choukos and sophomore Matt Kravstov.
"We have strong senior leadership and will get help from underclassmen," said coach Charlie Spry. “We think we have a lot of talent and can compete with anyone."
CARMEL CATHOLIC
The Corsairs return one starter in Hayden Chilcutt from a team which posted a 24-11 record a year ago. Battling for playing time are seniors Jonah Rosales and Nick Miranda and juniors Sebastian Adams, Jack Armstrong, Gavin Barnes, David Jacob, Alex Delgado, Ryan Farlee, Gabriel Flowers, Rylan Franada, Noah Ledesma Patrick Shrofe, Thomas Smithe and Michael Justin Ratliff.
"The East Suburban Catholic is so strong with defending state champion Marist as the team to beat," said coach Kevin Nylen. “Benet and Marian Catholic are solid teams that had great seasons. There will be a lot of positions open and a lot of competition. This group takes feedback and are always getting better. We are finding our footing and will surprise people come playoff time."
CONANT
The Cougars went 34-3 a year ago and won the Mid-Suburban League West, advancing to the Sweet 16 under coach Drewann Pancratz who has seniors Bryce Grogan and Tanish Bolleddula back from that team.
Seniors Matt Sudo, Taka Chinen, Deyan Krumov, Gavin Kovaca, Neal Mehrotra and Dan Ortega along with juniors David Cabaj and Gabe Kipta, sophomores Oliver Gornikowski and Miles Mantasoot and freshmen Kaloyan Kotev are players to watch.
"Every day our goal is to compete for the conference championship," said Pancratz. “We want to be at our best come playoff time. This is a great group of student-athletes. We have great senior leadership.”
FREMD
The Vikings (24-12) have senior Ethan Garst (NYU) and Alex Ma (University of Illinois) back along with junior David Otgonbat and sophomore Martin Hristov. Seniors Jose Gomez Parra and Sean Munhbayer, juniors Jonathan Kim, Aarav Parikh, Kaden Liao, Michael Nichols, Aarav Buddhadev and Fred Worst, sophomores Chase Hinojosa and Dave Stankiewwicz and freshman George Saladi are battling for roles on the team.
“The MSL features strong teams and strong individuals at a high level of skill and competitiveness," said coach Tracy Harding. ”We have a young varsity team with many dedicated players who improved during the off-season. We want to grow and develop as a team as the season goes on."
GRAYSLAKE CENTRAL
The Rams went 30-5 a year ago and won the NLCC with a perfect 12-0 record. They have six starters back: seniors Ben Boron (all-state, Lewis), Bryce Tupaz (Trine), Evan Page (North Central), George Hollenstein, Jackson Rowe and Carson Swigert.
''We want to win the NLCC again and make a deep run in the playoffs,“ coach Dan Erlenbaugh said.
GRAYSLAKE NORTH
Nikki Kirchway's Knights hope to improve on a 14-22 overall record and 5-7 in the NLCC behind returning seniors Alex Christoffel, Juan Huarta Rodriguez and Logan Smith, junior Manny Hernandez and sophomore Rees Obaid.
“We are working hard to show other teams what we are made of," said coach Nikki Kirchway, who also has newcomers Andrew Frederichs, Esteban Oviedo, Jake Ronsman and Noah Sanzana.
“We have a mix of athletes with high energy and work ethic. We have a competitive nature which will make Grayslake North a great team to watch."
HERSEY
The Huskies posted an impressive 31-7 mark, won the MSL East at 10-0 and won a regional championship. Hersey returns seniors Vinny Ingaunis and Jack Stolzer and sophomore Oscar Boduch while adding seniors Ryan Cramer, Dylan Stuklin and Julian Stern.
"We want to win the East again," said coach Laura Gerber. “We want to have another great season while rebuilding."
LAKES
The Eagles were 20-16 a year ago and 10-4 in the NLCC. They return seniors Rob Bode, Jack Marino, Darien Zamora and Jason Klimas and junior Nathan Polichnowski.
Newcomers include seniors Luke Rytina, Aidan Tan, Manasseh Safah and Juan Phillips along with junior Sean Collins and sophomore Ben Newcomb.
"We are in a strong conference and we have a strong defensive team," said coach Greg Bruns. “We have a fair amount of experience overall. We want to compete for the conference title and other tourneys."
LAKE ZURICH
Fifth-year coach Brett Stuart's team posted a 26-11 record, 4-3 in the North Suburban Conference.
Senior all-staters Gabe Schwartz (Division III Cal Lutheran) and Wyatt Jones (Division 1 Lewis) are back for the Bears along with seniors Ashton Stage and Konrad Bochenko and newcomers Josh Stephen, a sophomore, and freshmen Nikola Stanojevich and Illian Oblakov.
"The past two seasons have been the most successful in school history," said Stuart. "We have five starters back and four 3-year starters. The conference is strong and all of Lake County is challenging. There are no easy matches. We know every match will be extremely difficult.“
LEYDEN
With 10 returners, Leyden should improve on a 14-21 mark and 2-3 record in the West Suburban Conference Gold.
Returners are seniors Steven Kaczowka, Pablo Lamas, Ben Camerena, Adriel Carrera, Andre Soares and Antonio Petrucci along with juniors David Camey, Kamil Mroziak, Jesus Perez and Ritchie Zapata. They are adding senior Robert Swiatek and juniors Aaron Barbosa, Ryan Richmond and Jorge Gomez.
“We are excited to compete with a good group of athletes with a well-rounded team," said coach Amanda Jarosz. ”We as a team want to fight for first place. We are looking forward to the challenge. We have a young team growing to our potential. We want to compete well and perform well against top teams. We are motivated to get more wins and work to our potential."
LIBERTYVILLE
The Wildcats (18-14, 5-2 NSC) bring back seniors Aarav Bamrolia (all-state), Jordan Coughlin (all-conference) and Justin Howell along with juniors Jackson Kern (all-state, all-conference, UC Irvine), Nate Knight (all-conference, all-state) and Lukas Slesers.
Newcomers are seniors Tyler Wilson, Ben Rattner Alex Brown and Ryan Rendl and juniors Sam Gaiden and Braden Moss.
"We want to push our squad to be highly competitive and at the top of the NSC,“ coach Jenny Smith said. ”We hope the 2025 team will be perform at the highest level with the wealth of experience we have with our returners."
MAINE EAST
Coach Peter Min's troops hope to improve on a 13-21 overall record and 1-9 mark in the Central Suburban League North.
Seniors Dillan Zuniga, Jainam Patel, Landon Bujdel, Ali Usman, Albert Ontogtokh and Dev Patel and junior Max Gold return while newcomers include juniors Jason Dang, Chris Benny, Dave Dimaano, Raven Guleng, Adam Winkowski, Tristan Jullian and Teddy Tram and sophomore Oleksandr Hera.
"We have a seasoned returning class," said Min. “We have a strong incoming class and we want to make some noise in the CSL North.”
MAINE SOUTH
The Hawks, who lost to Lake Park in the 2024 regional final, return senior Leo Trespeces who is committed to Division I Northern Kentucky.
"We want to battle every season for the top spot in the CSL South, which has great competition," said coach Garrett Fechner. “In 2025, we will reload with young talent and the addition of a few returning underclassmen. It is exciting to see what this group can get done."
MAINE WEST
The Warriors (21-16, 2-8) are led by returning seniors Pete Dempsety, and Jake Mathew, juniors Donavan Brown, Luis Alvarez-Perez and Nick Moraru and sophomore Adrian Kleszczewski.
Juniors Adrian Palarz, Ronan Cusack, Jacob Becker, Nikola Cicic, Aiden Vega, Izak Hanson and Nathan Turner and sophomore Aiden Michels are others to watch.
“The conference is extremely competitive," said coach Mike O Brill. ”It is up for grabs. Vernon Hills and Niles North won last season. We hope for a shot at the title. A title we have never won. We will be young with only two seniors on the roster."
MUNDELEIN
The Mustangs (18-12, 5-2 NSC) tied for Libertyville for second in conference last year and bring back seniors Kevin Mann, Jarrett Chico (St. Xavier), Angel Estrada, Vlad Tkachuk, Zack Nocera, Jordan Jimenez and Krish Prajapati, and junior Rance Cruz.
"We have a veteran team with eight players returning," said coach George Dressen, who also has newcomers Creed Morton, a seniors, juniors Andrew Jimenez, Dan Servin and Anar Ayushar, and sophomore Ian Grandt.
“We are fast, talented and full of energy. There is no telling what they can accomplish this year. We want a 20-plus win season and play well in the state series.”
PALATINE
With a veteran group returning, the Pirates (20-16, 4-6) are expecting to take a step forward this year under 13th-year coach Pete Gavin.
Seniors Jackson Brown, Luke Tipton, Alex Huyser, Marcus Wardle, Raiden Alferez Jack Lerman and Frank Stark and junior Will Santiago all return while seniors Andrew Cannon and David Akeju join the mix.
"The conference will be competitive with Barrington as the frontrunners," said Gavin. “Every team is competitive. It is the most balanced and experienced team I have had. We hope the seniors will learn from last year's seniors with the program in their hands. We have great ball control with multi-sport athletes.”
ROUND LAKE
The Panthers are led by seniors Bill Cole, Romeo Cruz, Jadyn Davis, Jose Rodriguez, Alfonso Tinajero, Carlos Vilchiz and Isai Zelaya, juniors Eric Bahn, Cesar Camacho, Jeremiah Johnson and Jakob Lee and dophomore Damian Rodriguez.
"We are hoping to make a mark and improve every year," said first-year coach John Nicoline.
ROLLING MEADOWS
The Mustangs, under coach Kevin Bourn, hope to improve on a 9-24 mark, 1-9 in the MSL. They have seniors Logan Quadros and Michael Soehn back to go with seniors Yashwant Cherukuri and Tej Prattipati, juniors Richie Peters and Caleb Pate, sophomores Inti Zapata and Ryan Soehn and freshman Nikodem Opiolo.
"We have seniors guiding our newcomers," said Bourn. "We want to be competitive every match. This is the youngest team I have had in over a decade. We have two sophomores and one freshman looking to contribute varsity.“
SCHAUMBURG
The Saxons (15-21, 2-8 MSL) return seniors Hudson Hultstrand, Andrew Shogren and Girum Halle and add senior Jared Carter and juniors Alex Noga and Dylan Ogawa.
"The MSL West is as competitive as always," said coach Cory Griffin. “Barrington has a great program and is the team to beat. Fremd, Conant and Hoffman Estates are also solid teams. The players are working hard with the intention of improving and begin to return to our winning ways."
ST. VIATOR
The Lions (9-25) have seniors Mason Masiclat (St. Norbert), Kevin Doherty, Tommy Westerkamp, Tommy Wilson and Andy Sotelo, junior Jacob Bondy, and sophomores Cruz Ruiz Mullen, Adrian Ruzic and Owen Geroux back.
"We strive for the ESCC title," said coach Brennan Harrington, who also has senior Nate Sison, juniors Quinn Kochera, Tim Dillon and John Beyer, sophomore Lucas Roman and freshmen Nate Gauthier and Tommy Cholewa looking to make an impact.
“The conference is as competitive as ever. How this team comes together is important. We put so much time into the off-season. We have a chip on our shoulder after a challenging season. We just couldn't close out matches and convert them to wins.”
STEVENSON
The Patriots (27-11) won the North Suburban last year and have seniors Matt Okladlo and Tony Hwang and junior Marcel Ryszkowski back to go with newcomers Dulguun Ankhbayar, a senior, juniors Zolbayar Munkbat and Andi Chandak and freshman Any Helfand.
"It looks like every season post-COVID that we are completely retooling talented, committed, motivated 15 players," said coach Eric Goolish. “We expect to be in the mix for championships in the conference, regionals and invitationals. We anticipate Lake Zurich, Libertyville and Mundelein to be strong. All 3 return a good core. Each presents a different challenge."
VERNON HILLS
The Cougars (29-9) have won four straight CSL North titles under coach Chris Curry, who is 597-208 in 23 seasons. They have seniors Liam Boehme (Wabash), Julian Rodriguez, Parker Ellis and Aiden Kim back to go with senior Sammy Ryniec and juniors Kosta Markou and Quami Ray.
"We want to compete for a fifth straight CSL North title,“ said Curry. ”We have six competitive schools in the conference. We are connected and playing to our strength. We are figuring out what works for us."
WARREN
The Blue Devils (13-20, 3-4 in NSC) return all-conference performer senior Caleb Bicket and junior Joel Paasch while sophomore Andrew Cowell is a newcomer to watch.
"We have a young team with a strong sophomore class," said coach Kim Paasch. “We have a few solid returners. We want to improve our overall record and keep a consistent level of play this season."