Benet's Ladowski in command

Luke Ladowski is one of Benet's two co-captains, and the fact that he's only a sophomore speaks volumes about his ability, his court awareness and his stature as a team-leader.

On Thursday Ladowski's all-around game was on display as he helped lead the host Redwings to a 25-17, 25-21 win over East Suburban Catholic Conference foe Carmel.

"Luke really gave a command performance," said Benet coach Amy Van Eekeren. "He stepped up and took over a lot of that match. He was aggressive, he was communicating with his teammates and we got a lot of defense from him. He was all over the court."

Ladowski, who finished the match as co-kill leader along with Bobby Wehrli with 8, was just one of the Redwings (10-9, 1-1) who came forward in a game that could be viewed as a season changer for a young team that has struggled with inconsistency.

"Tonight our defense made a move in the right direction," Van Eekeren said. "But we still have a ways to go. Our communication was better, so that gave us more consistency in passing and we worked very hard at varying our offense."

Middle-hitter Dan Nesnidal also had a big game with 6 kills and 6 blocks.

The strong passing game was giving setter and senior co-captain Matt Krzywocz better position, and he responded by providing accurate sets to a variety of hitters. He finished with 24 assists and 4 blocks.

"Matt was setting very well tonight," Nesnidal said. "And Luke was hitting harder than ever and passing very well."

"With Matt closer to the net we can run our middles more effectively," Ladowski said. "It's easier for Dan to get his huge, long arms over the net for those kills."

In Game 1 Redwings went on a pair of extended runs, a 5-point surge with Krzywocz serving, followed by a 6-point run when Eric Kleiser was at the line.

When those two sprees were finished the Redwings had an 18-10 lead and the first game pretty much wrapped up.

In Game 2 Benet held a comfortable lead early, but the Corsairs (5-12, 1-1) rallied and closed the gap to 23-21 before a Wehrli kill and a Carmel error ended the match.

"We need a bit more energy, but we're improving," Ladowski said. "I have to try to pump up the team as much as I can."

Joe Berg led the Redwings with 11 digs, followed by Wehrli who had 6 and Ladowski with 4.

Michael Fitzgibbons led Carmel with 5 kills.

"Being as young as they are, the Benet players really know the game," said Carmel coach Kevin Nylen. "They kept us off-balance with their offense and our defense couldn't adjust. And their ability to cover the floor on defense was wonderful. We struggle with inconsistency. And when we made that comeback in Game 2, we played with no fear, but we made too many errors."