Stevenson stays hot, wins at Lake Forest

Two weeks ago, Stevenson's volleyball team swept its invitational tournament to improve from 5-5 to 10-5. The Patriots haven't lost since.

Friday, they continued that streak at Lake Forest, pulling ahead late in the first game and leading throughout the second in a 26-24, 25-20 victory. Stevenson improved to 14-5 on the year and 3-0 in the North Suburban Lake Division.

"We've just been getting some confidence, and the girls' chemistry keeps getting better," Patriots coach Tim Crow said. "The girls are stepping up in all phases of the game, we've been able to utilize our bench, and we've got a good streak going here."

The host Scouts led Game 1 by as many as 5 and had a chance for game point at 24-20. But a Lake Forest service error gave Stevenson back the ball. A well-placed tip by Hannah Burke made it 24-22 before the Scouts hit long off a serve from Margaret Salata (9-of-11 serving). On the next point, Lake Forest tried a tip but Amanda Fleishman (10-of-11 hitting, 6 kills) returned it with a hard hit to tie the game.

"Amanda was fantastic tonight," Crow said. "Her great heads-up play at the net, her attacking, her blocking. When she plays well at the net, we're a very strong team."

A Scouts net violation gave the Patriots their first lead since the early going, and the Patriots finished their run when Lake Forest blocked wide on a hit by Mary Kate Fritzsche.

Stevenson never trailed in the second game, as the Patriots used strong digging by the entire lineup to keep balls alive and prevent Lake Forest from ever scraping together a run.

"It was good to see that effort," Crow said. "We only had a few mental lapses where we weren't moving our feet well, but overall the girls played well. The majority of the plays we were making tonight were just hustle plays, and the girls are doing a good putting forth that extra effort and hustle. Balls that earlier in the year they didn't seem to think they could get to, now they do and they're getting to those balls and making plays."

Burke distributed the ball well all match, passing a perfect 41-of-41 with 24 assists.

"In the last month or so, she's developed a really good grasp of our offense," Crow said. "She knows when to mix it up with hitters and when to get the ball to certain hitters at certain times. She's fun to watch in the sense of how athletic she is, how well she moves her feet and how well she's able to put up a hitter's ball the majority of the time. Like any team with their setter, how she goes is how we're going to go."

Michelle Fleischman hit 6-of-6 with 3 kills while serving 8-of-9. Salata hit 8-of-9 with 4 kills. On the outside, Kelly Hall hit 13-of-13 with 6 kills while leading the team with 11 digs, and Fritzsche hit 6-of-6 with 3 kills and 8 digs.

"The luxury of having two DSs from last year's team as your outsides is you know they're going to play all around and do a great job for you," Crow said of Hall and Fritzsche. "Our main focus for them is their defense and passing for us, and they've been hitting pretty well -- making good choices and not committing many errors."

The Patriots have a rare weekend off before trying to continue their streak Tuesday against Lake Division rival Mundelein.