DGN Volleyball Preview: Trojans Aim To Get Ahead of Competition

 volleyball stars Taylor Kasal and Jessie Tulacka put their heads together last year, but the result was not what they had in mind.

The two Division I recruits knocked heads in a collision during the Trojans’ first tournament of the 2010 season. Tulacka suffered a concussion and missed 11 matches and could never get back on track, finishing with a 17-19 record.

The 6-1 Tulacka, who is headed to Bradley University, and the 5-11 Kasal, who is being recruited by Denver, Auburn and Rhode Island, among others, plan to collaborate again this fall with the hope of returning the Trojans to the winning ways that have marked most of the last decade.

“Hopefully no one gets injured,” Tulacka said. “That’s the goal.”

“Hopefully, (Tulacka) doesn’t get knocked out again,” Kasal added.

If Kasal and Tulacka stay healthy, the Trojans should have no problem posting a winning record. The four-year starters are extremely versatile and hard for opponents to defend. Both can play setter, outside hitter and right side hitter.

Not even coach Mark Wasik knows how each will be utilized this season, though Kasal figures to play a lot at setter, regardless of whether the Trojans run a 5-1 or a 6-2 offense.

“They both can hit outside, they both can hit right side, they can do a little bit of everything,” Wasik said. “They’ve just been super-solid from Day One. What’s been probably most nice about them is their level of improvement has been exponential every year, so it’s not like they peaked early.

“I still think they’ve got a high ceiling. They can still improve. It’s nice that they came in so advanced and their skills have continued to improve.”

As was demonstrated last year, the Trojans play best when both are in the lineup. When Tulacka was injured, Wasik switched from a 6-2 offense to a 5-1, with Kasal the lone setter. A return to the 6-2 is a likely scenario.

“We know each other well,” Tulacka said. “On the court we know our tendencies and we maximize on that. We help each other out.

“They were so used to me playing with them, so once I went out I think it was hard for them to adjust to running a 5-1.” Kasal is clearly more comfortable with Tulacka on the court.

“When she was out, I didn’t have that go-to player and now that she’s back in you can just set her and know that it’s going to be put away,” Kasal said. “So it’s nice to have her around.”

The Trojans, who travel to Marian Catholic on Aug. 29 to start the season and host Naperville Central the next night, also welcome back two other starters in 6-1 sophomore right-side hitter Katherine Mahlke and junior defensive specialist Carolyn Nojiri.

figures to be tough defensively with Nojiri and juniors Gretchen Landego and Emily Planek anchoring the back line. Sophomore outside hitter Grace Marek is another strong digger.

“I think we’re going to have a pretty good defense,” Kasal said. “We have a few strong hitters, so defensively if we keep the balls up, we can easily put them down.”

The Trojans have set lofty goals for themselves. They want to finish with a winning record, win a regular season tournament and capture conference and regional championships.

Winning the West Suburban Conference Silver Division, which Wasik deemed the toughest in the state last year, will be an especially tough task. Defending champion Lyons Township won the Class 4A state championship in 2010, beating York in the state semifinals, while Hinsdale Central and Oak Park were sectional semifinalists.

But Wasik, whose team lost a lot of close games last year while Tulacka was injured, thinks the tough competition will prepare the Trojans to make a playoff run, and his players are optimistic.

“We mesh together as a team very well, I think,” Tulacka said. “We all get along really well. The past few years we got along, but this year it just seems like a lot better chemistry, so I think that will help us a lot.”

“Right now they’re setting a high bar,” Wasik said, “and we’ll see if we can raise that bar.”