Stevenson handles Glenbrook South
The Stevenson boys volleyball team may not have a lot of tall players on its roster, but the Patriots more than made up for that lack of size with some outstanding play in every aspect of their game Friday night against Glenbrook South.
The Patriots were impressive from start to finish as they captured a 25-20 victory over the Titans in the first set before easily rolling to a 25-13 win in the second set for the match in the nonconference contest.
Stevenson (6-1) led Glenbrook South (1-1) from start to finish in the first set as 2 aces by junior Sam Nuudel (8 kills) staked the Patriots to an early 6-1 advantage.
The Titans kept the set close with a service point by sophomore Jaki Erdene cutting the lead to 20-18. But 2 kills by Nuudel boosted the lead to 23-19 before a net serve by Glenbrook South closed out the 25-20 win for the Patriots.
"I'm really proud of my team. We played very well, and we worked hard in practice this week," said Nuudel. "Our team is pretty undersized, so we pass well, serve well, and limit our errors."
The Titans also fell behind 7-1 in the second set on a kill by Stevenson senior Karl Lutz (6 kills) before a service point by Luzt boosted the lead to 10-3.
"Stevenson did an excellent job defensively shutting down our hitting and keeping the ball in play," said Glenbrook South coach Annie Kotsadam. "They had a quick offense so we struggled with our blocks. Hopefully we'll see them in the next tournament so we look forward to another match with them."
Two kills by Nuudel and a service point by senior Dan Nuudel boosted the lead to 17-8 before 4 service points by Stevenson's Leo Kleban gave the Pats a commanding 23-10 lead.
A spike by Stevenson's Christian Headley (5 kills) made the score 24-13 before an ace by Lutz closed out the match to account for the final score.
Dan Nuudel had 21 assists and 2 aces for Stevenson while senior Cooper Evans led Glenbrook South with 4 kills and 2 aces. The Titans also got 4 kills and 2 digs from Alex Rupprecht while sophomore teammate Kris Blumberg had 9 digs.
"I was just really happy with our hitting efficiency. We kept our errors down from the attacking side of the game, and it was just another productive night out of the middles and the right side," said Stevenson coach Eric Goolish. "(Sam Nuudel) is a great asset for our team. He is growing and making the right decisions when he's attacking. He's very skilled and for him to control his errors tonight is a big step."
The Titans were never able to establish or maintain any momentum as the Patriots' defense stymied their offense throughout the match.
"Stevenson is a very scrappy team and it was very frustrating for us, so kudos to them on their defense," added Kotsadam, whose team never got closer than 13-8 after the slow start in the second set. "It was a tough game for us, but it's early in the season."