Curtis provides fine service, but Rams fall short

If Grayslake Central's Shannon Curtis could have stayed at the service line all match, the Rams likely would have scored a home victory Tuesday over Johnsburg's volleyball team.

Unfortunately for Grayslake Central, there were few highlights when Curtis was not serving.

Johnsburg overcame early deficits in each game and emerged with a 25-19, 25-15 victory in the Fox Valley opener for both squads.

Coming off an impressive victory over Zion-Benton on Monday, the Rams were disappointed with their performance.

"They were upset," Grayslake Central coach Jason Janczak said. "They knew they could have played better."

This was the second time Grayslake Central (7-9, 0-1) and Johnsburg (11-5, 5-1) have played each other. Johnsburg won the first meeting in three games.

The first part of each game Tuesday was a mirror image of the other. The match began with Curtis serving 4 consecutive points, 3 of which were aces. In the second game, a kill by junior Tory Dohm gave Grayslake Central a 1-0 lead and put Curtis at the service line.

She proceeded to use her jump-float serve to rip off 4 aces and 6 service points in all. Curtis' serve moved around much the same way a good knuckleball does.

"I've been working on it a lot and I've finally got it," Curtis said.

Curtis' teammates know how tough it can be to return her serve.

"It moves around like crazy," Dohm said.

Added Johnsburg coach Sue Feely: "We don't have a lot of experience against that. She had some nice serves."

Johnsburg's offense proved tough to stop for most of the match. With the score tied 11-11 in the opener, the Skyhawks went on a 13-5 run to put the game away.

Junior outside hitter Sharon Freund had a big second game. Freund, who had a match-high 9 kills, helped Johnsburg turn a 12-6 deficit into an 18-14 advantage with 3 kills during this stretch. Grayslake Central only scored one more point the rest of the game.

"When things are going our way no one can stop us, but we have to get over the hump when we face a setback," Janczak said. "We can't let a setback affect our game."

Curtis could sense the momentum switching to Johnsburg.

"Everyone was pumped in the beginning, but we let the momentum slip away," she said.

Dohm's 6 kills and 6 digs paced Grayslake Central. Junior libero Lauren Novak also had 6 digs.

Junior Anna Dlesk (4 kills, 5 digs) continues to improve with each match.

"She's getting more confident," Janczak said. "She has a big heart and a lot of desire."