Boys volleyball: Wheeling handles Fremd
The Wheeling boys volleyball team finished up its best regular season in recent memory with a Mid-Suburban League crossover win over Fremd Tuesday night.
Playing on its home court, the Wildcats defeated the Vikings 25-21, 25-22 to improve to 27-7 on the year.
Ask coach Jason Kopkowski, and he'll say it's hard work, camaraderie and senior leadership that's responsible for his team's success.
"The guys have put in a ton of time," said Kopkowski. "They've really come together as a team. They've been good friends for a long time. We have eight seniors on the team so they've all been through this together.
"I tell them all the time, 'when I see you guys play it makes me want to play.' That's how inspiring they are."
Joe Hernandez, one of the Wheeling seniors, pitched in with a great defensive game by posting 18 digs.
"We had to play as a team tonight, play together and believe in each other," said Hernandez. "When we play together as a unit it's really hard to stop us."
Fremd (17-12) started slow in both sets then rallied in each, but couldn't sustain the effort down the stretch.
"We've competed all season," said Vikings coach Curt Pinley. "Our team is a team that doesn't give up. They really work hard, especially at the end of matches, but today Wheeling had a little more firepower and we struggled to stay consistent."
The Wildcats opened up a 5-point lead midway through the first set, but Fremd caught up at 20-20, helped along by an ace from senior Martin Michalski. Then Wheeling senior Jared Moser responded with 2 consecutive kills and Wheeling went on to take Game 1.
Fremd grabbed its only lead of the match at 10-9 in the second set when Mitchell Sheehan got one of his game-high 4 block kills. It went nip-and-tuck thereafter, but once again the Wildcats pulled away late in the game, and George Tsogtbaatar put down the final point for the win.
"This is the final year for us eight seniors," said Moser, "and the chemistry is really there. This year it just came together for us. We're flowing, and as my teammate Jan Baranowski would say, 'we're just vibing.' "
Michalski played a great all-around match for the Vikings with 4 kills on 10-of-13 hitting, 2 aces, and 14-for-17 on serve receive.
Moser led Wheeling on attack with 13 kills and an ace while Tsogtbaatar posted 11 assists.
"Since I'm a senior, my last year, I really want to make it count," said Hernandez. "Most of the team is seniors so in the playoffs we really want to go on a long run."
"We've got to not get too high, and not get too low," added Moser of the Wheeling postseason hopes. "Just keep a median of looseness and seriousness and keep up that competitive nature in our play."