Of the four matches the Downers Grove South boys volleyball team has competed in this season, none has been a bigger battle than Addison Trail.
Both teams opened Western Suburban Gold Conference action in Downers Grove, as the Blazers maintained a perfect 3-0 season after beating the Mustangs, 25-23, 18-25, 25-23 in a tough match April 7.
"(Addison Trail coach Tim Murphy) said at the beginning, 'This could be for the conference title,'" South coach Tony Nevrly said after his Mustangs dropped to 2-2 on the year. "I'm not excluding Morton or anything, but there's a lot of volleyball left. We don't control our destiny. We have to play the next five conference matches the best we can and see what happens."
The third game was the highlight of the match, as it was tied 17 times. Neither team took more than a two-point lead until the end, when Addison Trail tallied three consecutive points to end the match.
"It was just back and forth the whole game," Murphy said. "I credit that to our defense -- it's what keeps us in games. Downers South has a really good team, they played an awesome game and really gave us a run for it."
"It came down to whatever team passed the best at the end, and we didn't," Nevrly added. "It cost us at the end."
South won Game 2, but not without Addison Trail putting up a good fight. The Mustangs led 18-9 after a kill from Adam Ivetic, only to have the Blazers respond with a seven-point run to put the score at 18-16. The home team, however, scored the final seven of nine points, including five straight to end the game.
"We came out really quick and had some good energy," Nevrly said.
"They were just a little too much for us in that game," Murphy added.
In the first game, Downers Grove South jumped out to a 6-1 lead, but Addison Trail was able to tie it up at 10. It held its lead until the Mustangs knotted it up at 23, but the Blazers sealed the deal with back-to-back points to close it out.
The Mustangs were led by five different players with at least five kills apiece -- Buddy Steinhaus (eight), Julius Staisiunas (seven), Ivetic (six), David Manganiello (six) and Sam Kull (five). Phil Szuck added eight digs and 34 assists.
Addison Trail was led by Mike Fashoda (match-high 10 kills), Ethan Schramm (9 kills) and Chris Vazquez (2 aces, 31 assists).
Comment at thedownersgrovesun.com
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