Girls volleyball: WW South's roll continues with win over Addison Trail
Returning to the court less than 24 hours after capturing its first conference title since 2007, Wheaton Warrenville South could have been primed for a letdown.
The Tigers had other ideas.
Continuing their already special season, the Tigers received contributions from their entire roster in a 25-12, 25-15 home nonconference girls volleyball victory over Addison Trail on Wednesday.
The Tigers, who will try to finish off a perfect 7-0 run through the DuKane Conference next Tuesday against Glenbard North, improved to 21-6 on the fall as they await the 24-team Autumnfest tournament this weekend.
"I think a really big thing is we have two left-handed hitters," said senior setter Darby Harris after the Tigers had six different players register kills in the opening game. "That gives the other team a lot of different things to look at. The last couple of weeks we've also been running some plays, moving hitters around, trying to mess up the blocking schemes.
"I also think a lot of us have a very similar mindset. When it comes to everyone, we are all on the same page. We are 110-percent all-in. Whether you are a freshman or a senior, when you all have that mindset, you are able to work together as a team."
WWS scored 15 of the final 21 points in the second game, highlighted by a pair of kills from Rebecca Bellows, to close out the match. In the opener, the Tigers jumped out to a quick 10-3 lead behind Maddie Mlady, who tallied 5 kills in the match, and an ace by libero Taylor Olsen finished the game.
"Winning conference will help us moving forward to do the best we can," Olsen said. "All of us are really close and that's why we are playing really well. It's been awesome, it's been really fun especially with 11 seniors on the team. We play well as a team, not as individuals."
Bellows finished with a team-high 8 kills, Lily Huntzinger contributed 4 kills and Lilly King and Lauren Coyne each had 3.
"It's a neat group to work with," said WWS coach Bill Schreier, whose team is the No. 2 seed at the Bartlett sectional. "They put in the time and they put in the effort and that's all you can ask for. The proof is in how they play. No matter who was on the court, the level of play didn't deteriorate at all. It's fun to get contributions from everyone."
The Blazers (11-16), who have a 3-2 record in the West Suburban Gold Conference, battled throughout. Charlotte Cahill and Stephanie Petrbok had 3 kills apiece to lead the way. AT is the 12-seed at Bartlett.
"We had a lot of fight," AT coach Katie Inzinga said. "They've been working really hard. I'm super proud of them, proud of our eight seniors. We play tough teams to get better."