The future is now for Benet

Brad Baker had the vision the first night out.

It only took the new young Benet coach one evening of summer league volleyball a little over a year ago for him to imagine his team playing for a state championship.

"After that first night," he said, "I thought it was a reality. Something that could happen and should happen."

To watch Benet play this fall, you would think excellence in volleyball is as much of a school tradition as basketball in the old gym and Mr. White's senior class trips abroad. A 39-1 record, a roster stocked with seven future Division I players, will do that.

In truth, though, playing for a state championship was nothing more than a pipedream four years ago for a group of shy, timid freshman girls.

"I would haver never guessed it," said Benet senior Jessica Jendryk. "But if you would have told me before this year I'd have no doubts."

It's not like the collection of talent moved together as a group to high school. Jendryk came from St. Michael's, Ariana Mankus and Paige Vargas played for rivals St. Joan of Arc and St. Peter and Paul. Future teammates Natalie Patzin and Val Mattaliano went to Hill Middle School and St. Petronille.

Jendryk and Mankus did play club together since eighth grade. Several have known each other since the fifth grade, albeit it from a distance.

"We had no idea that we would come together like we have," Mankus said.

That senior group has played varsity together since they were sophomores. A few since freshman year. They lost to Naperville Central in the sectional final last year.

They have watched friends from Naperville Central win two state championships over the last three years.

Area rivals like Downers Grove South and St. Francis boast multiple state championships. Up until this year, when Benet won its first sectional championship, all the schools had in common was geography.

"It would be nice to put us on the map," Baker said.

The girls value the opportunity before them.

"It's unreal," Mankus said. "Not a lot of high school athletes get this opportunity. We feel extremely fortunate to have a group of talented, hard-working people that have a desire to win."

The close-knit nature of the team cannot be discounted.

"They genuinely care about each other and like being around each other," Baker said. That doesn't always happen. You can grow apart as a team, you don't always come together and have these great seasons. But when you have a team that wants to do well not only for yourself but for your teammates, you end up having the season like we have had."

Benet's seniors understand how much their success means to the school. That they are making history, and in a sense are building blocks for the program's success.

"If we win this weekend we don't want this to be the only state championship," said Jendryk, whose younger sister Jenna is a freshman and also plays volleyball.

"This class has a chance to start something special," Baker said. "We have a lot of youngsters coming up that are good, but sometimes it takes a group like this to get you downstate. It shows that it is a reality."