Sports
Girls Volleyball: Late Rally Gives Trojans Win in Home Opener
Downers North: 20-25-28, Naperville Central: 25-21-26. A dominant game by senior Jessie Tulacka and a late Game 3 rally keeps Trojans from starting season 0-2.
Downers Grove North’s girls volleyball home opener against Naperville Central on Tuesday had all the drama of a playoff match. Not surprising, considering the two faced off last year in the regionals, a Naperville victory.
The Trojans rallied from a 23-18 deficit in Game 3 with a rousing 28-26 win to put them at 1-1 after their loss to Marian Catholic on Monday.
The Redhawks (0-1) took control of Game 1 early thanks to some excellent defensive blocks by juniors Sammy Condon and Alysia Baznik. The Trojans tied the game at 15 and 16 before Condon and Baznik took control with two kills each en route to a 25-20 Game 1 victory.
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The Trojans took an early lead in Game 2 before the Redhawks rallied, taking a 19-18 lead. Trojans senior Jessie Tulacka took charge and dropped four of her game-high 20 kills down the stretch to secure a 25-21 win.
The third game started as a back and forth affair until the Redhawks, led by juniors Carly Wesolowski and Maddie Siambeckos led their team on a 13-8 run to put the Redhawks up 23-18 and two points from their first win of the season.
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Trojans coach Mark Wasik instilled confidence in his team when they needed it most during a timeout.
“I said to them, 'Let’s go for it,'" he said. "If we’re going to make mistakes we’re going to make them being aggressive. I told them to put the game in their hands.”
The Trojans took it to heart with a 7-1 run, thanks to two brilliant serves by Carolyn Nojiri and some poor defense by the Redhawks, to take a 25-24 lead. Kills by Baznik and Siambeckos put the Redhawks back up 26-25, but the mistakes finally sunk them. An interference call and kills by Karissa Brazdys and Katherine Mahlke, respectively, gave the Trojans the win.
The Trojans’ home win was especially impressive since senior Taylor Kasal, Tulacka’s counterpart on the court, was out with an ankle injury.
Redhawks coach Brie Isaacson said, “It’s a first match, and it showed. You have to start somewhere, and we struggled, especially on serving and defense, which we had done so well in practice.”
Baznik led the Redhawks with 10 kills and junior Kendall Ward had six. Setter Abbi Williamson had 17 assists and Condon had five blocks.
The Trojans travel to Lincoln-Way East on Sept. 6 followed by a road match against crosstown rival Downers Grove South the next day. The Redhawks will participate in the Jacobs Invitational Tournament on Saturday.
