Prospect boys volleyball coach Riedy hits 500-win mark

Mike Riedy is a longtime math teacher at Prospect High School.

The Hoffman Estates High School graduate has also been a fixture coaching girls and boys volleyball at the District 214 school.

And the wins sure have added up.

He recently hit 500 wins with the boys program and had 344 with the girls before turning the girls program over to Laura Gerber.

According to the IHSA website, only five other coaches have reached the 500-win mark in boys volleyball.

The milestone triumph came in a two-set win over Conant in a Mid-Suburban League crossover.

It was a special night as alumni and their parents were on hand.

"It just means I'm really old," Reidy said of his accomplishment with a laugh. "The thing that struck me most was the impact that volleyball and I as a coach had on their lives. "I see it today when I see how many of my former players are involved in volleyball."

When his Knights played at the Palatine tourney this season, there were at least eight coaches and officials who had played for Riedy during his career who were working the event.

The math teacher, coincidentally, said 500 wins is "just a number."

"I like 137 better," he added. "That's the number of players that have graduated as a volleyball player."

When he started coaching the sport, Riedy never envisioned all the wins.

"When you look at the state records there are some pretty impressive names up at the top," he said. "I never thought my name would be included with them.

"I could not have done this without the help of my amazing coaches over the years. They worked with the players, helped run the program and guided me over these past years."

One of those assistants was former Fremd standout volleyball and softball player Daria Schaffeld, who also teaches at Prospect.

"It has been an honor and a pleasure to stand beside Mike for almost all of these 500 wins," she said. "I cherish the memories and look forward to marching toward 600 in the years to come."

Riedy's past players were proud of their former coach.

"Five wins on the court is an amazing accomplishment and you can't forget to add in all the victories for the lives he's affected of the young men he has coached," said Kevin Kowala, a 1998 graduate who played on the 1997 Knights team that placed fourth in the state. "I thank him for all the memories and bonds he made for us that we may not realize."

Kevin Woltera, a 2010 graduate, said words don't do justice to Riedy's accomplishment.

"But if anyone deserves it, it's him," Woltera said. "His dedication to the sport and the program he created has been nothing less than inspirational, and I often find myself feeling very fortunate to have experienced a piece of it all."

Peter King, from the class of 2000, has been Riedy's junior varsity coach since 2015.

"It's such a huge accomplishment," King said. "It has been a privilege and honor to have played for him, against him and alongside him. He has been an inspirational person in my life and I thank him for that."

Softball

Wisconsin-Whitewater senior Caitlin Catino (Buffalo Grove) was named an All-American by the National Strength and Conditioning Association for her commitment to strength and conditioning and athletic accomplishments for the 2018-19 academic year.

A four-year starter for the softball team, Catino helped the Warhawks win the WIAC regular-season championship for the third consecutive year and qualify for the NCAA Tournament for the second straight season.

She was selected honorable mention All-WIAC and first team Google Cloud Academic All-District by the College Sports Information Directors of America, finishing the season with a .312 batting average to go along with 8 doubles, 5 triples, 4 home runs and 26 RBI.

• Central Florida freshman Caroline Hoppe (Barrington) threw the final three innings of a 15-4 win over Howard in the second round of the NJCAA national tournament. Hoppe struck out two and allowed only 2 hits in her relief stint and was named to the all-tournament team.

• Illinois Wesleyan freshman first baseman Colleen Palczynski (Prospect) was chosen to the 2019 NCAA Division III All-Great Lakes Region third team.

Palczynski led the Titans with 25 RBI and had a .324 batting average with 5 home runs and 8 doubles.

Senior Julie Josten (Fremd) wrapped up a solid four-year career win in Bloomington with 5 doubles and 9 RBI this spring for the Titans, who made it to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Division III tourney and finished with a 39-10 record.

Baseball

Lewis University's Brandon Post (Elk Grove) was named Midwest region second team for the American Baseball Coaches Association and National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association.

Post was also named to the Division II Conference Commissioner's Association All-Midwest region team on May 10.

He posted a .389 batting average and led the Flyers in hits (77), triples (6) and runs (51). He was second on the team with 39 RBI and 12 stolen bases.

Post was one of nine players from the Great Lakes Valley Conference selected to the ABCA All-Midwest region team among the 32 players representing the GLVC.

"I couldn't be happier for Brandon," said Lewis baseball coach Tim McDonough. "It's a well-deserved honor. He was a huge part of our team and we don't have the success we had without him. To see him end his Lewis career with an all-region nod is a great accomplishment." Post was an All-GLVC first-team selection in 2019. The Flyers finished 27-24 and advanced to the GLVC tournament for the first time since 2014.

Women's tennis

Millikin sophomore Katie Cooper (Prospect) received the Coach's Award for the Big Blue this spring and she earned her second letter.