I give you the boys volleyball preview to find out which of our area schools will be making noise this season. This preview is sponsored by BMO Harris Bank.
Neuqua Valley look to find some consistency
Starting off the boys’ volleyball preview with Neuqua Valley. Last season was an up-and-down year for the Wildcats who finished with a 19-15 overall record. In conference play, the blue and yellow finished 6-2 which earned them a second-place finish in the DVC behind Metea Valley. The Wildcats finished their season with a win in the regional quarterfinals, before falling in the semifinals after a tough two-set loss to Downers Grove North. This year’s roster will be almost completely different with the likes of Cole Vonnahme, Mason Dentzman, and Matt Penrose all graduating. Only five players are expected to make a return this year as the Wildcats look to improve on last season. The towering Gavin O’Brien will be one of the top returning seniors in the area.
Waubonsie Valley trying to have a strong season
Moving on to another District 204 school with Waubonsie Valley. Much like Neuqua, the Warriors had a season full of highs and lows finishing with a 19-17 record in volleyball. In the state tournament, the Warriors faced Benet Academy in the regional semifinal but in a thrilling three-set match, the green and gold were eliminated. This season for the Warriors will be an interesting one after losing 12 of their 15 players from last year. With top players such as Andrej Moller, Michael Lu, and Ethan Quaye moving on to college, the three returnees, Colin Bishop, Tyler Vasquez, and Rishi Menon will be looking to step up and have a strong season for the Warriors.
Naperville Central itching to get back to its winning ways
Naperville Central struggled to find consistency in 2022, picking up eight wins on the season and finishing in last place in the DVC. The Redhawk’s season ended early in the regional quarterfinals after a two-set loss to Oswego East. The red and white are going to be missing players such as Max Grumbles and Jackson Deer but the good news for the Hawks is that the roster was very young a season ago. The team has five returning juniors this spring with the likes of Hudson Warnes trying to bring the Redhawks back to their winning ways.
Benet Academy with a much different team
One of the top boys’ volleyball teams in the area last year was Benet Academy. The Redwings finished the year with an impressive 27-10 record and a 7-1 conference tally in the ESCC. The Wings made it to the regional final after a tough win over Waubonsie but fell just short to #3-seeded Lyons Township in an exciting three-set match. The red and black will be losing some key players on the court with Drew Rogers, Ben Guth, and Kovas Neverauskas graduating. Coach Steinberg says the squad will be almost entirely revamped.
“This team is going to look very different than the team last year. Just because I think back to the team last year, I think everyone was a senior except for two players. So when you look at that, you’re starting fresh this year with a couple of guys coming back. And we have two returners who started in full time last year that will be back. But when you’re filling that many pieces, the court’s going to look different, said Coach Jeff Steinberg.
Metea Valley wanting to build off of last season
Another one of our schools that had a strong year was Metea Valley. The Mustangs were one of the most improved teams in the area with a 28-10 record with a 7-1 DVC record, good enough to win the conference for the first time in school history. The team also picked up a pair of post season wins over IMSA and St. Francis. But like Benet, the Mustangs lost in the regional final to Hinsdale Central. The black and yellow is another team that will be losing a majority of their starting roster, graduating players like Aidan Murphy and Chad Luckinbill. The good news for Metea is that two of the four players returning are Bartosz Chmielewski and Robert Stewart, two talents who played a pivotal role last year and will surely be even more important this season.
Naperville North returning plenty of talent
The last team of our boys volleyball preview is Naperville North. The Huskies ended their 2022 campaign with a record of 16-21 finishing with a 4-4 DVC record. The blue and orange won their opening matchup in the state tournament against Nazareth Academy before losing in three sets to Oswego. Unlike a lot of the teams we’ve talked about the North squad will have a decent amount of players returning with outside hitter Noah Hrubesky and now sophomore Ermuun Batchuluun among the seven players that are expected to be back for another year hoping that the Huskies can have success in the 2023 season. Naperville North will also be the lone local team with a new leader of the program as Elijah Medlock takes the reigns as head coach for the Huskies this spring.
Check out the other previews here!
