Stevenson Volleyball Again Reaches 30 Wins Mark

Retiring Libertyville volleyball coach Steve Rochon weighed in on the skills of libero Darien Wu last week. He called Wu the most college-ready player in the area. And Stevenson coach Tim Crow also had nice things to say about the senior.

"He was simply amazing,'' Crow said. "Probably the best skill kid we have had here."

Stevenson's volleyball team won 31 matches and dropped only six. The Patriots beat Libertyville three times this season, only to drop the fourth match in the sectional final in Gurnee.

It will not take away from an excellent season. The Pats showed other teams the importance of blocking at the net. The Pats, led by Wu, also played strong defense.

Niki Antonijevic: The 6-foot-9 outside hitter is headed for Pepperdine University for more volleyball next year. His 298 kills led the Pats’ offense. Add his blocks together and it is more than 100 this season. And he still had time to play defense, with 198 digs.

Zach Kravits: One of the best setters in the area. Kravits flourished in the Stevenson offense. No one in the audience at Lake Forest for the regional title game will soon forget his tough kill that ended Warren's season. Kravits rang up 578 assists. He was a help at the net with 84 blocks. Despite his role of setting the ball, the senior still managed 78 kills. His serving was helpful, too, as he notched 42 aces.

Danny Gescheidle: The senior outside hitter survived on his smarts. Nicknamed "Danny Ice" by his coach for his late-game heroics, the senior was second on the club with 278 kills.

Wu led the defense with 428 digs.

The Pats also help in the serving department from versatile Stefan Boes. He has graduated along with his fellow seniors Nick Millman, Jason Colby and Andrew Abrams.

The next Stevenson team will rebuild around promising middle blockers Mitch Robinson, Bradley Tiller, Jason Fleischman and Aaron Zalewski. Jonah May is a candidate to replace Kravits at setter. Aaron Appelbaum is a junior outside hitter. Of course, all these players will get a push from a dazzling junior varsity team.

Recap: The saying goes, it's tough to beat a team three times. Well, how about four times? Earlier in the season, Stevenson had put a hurt on the Wildcats of Libertyville in a pair of 25-14 thrashings.

Did the Patriots figure out they were playing a hot Libertyville squad in the sectional semifinal on May 27?

Stevenson tied game one 23-23 in the Warren gym. That's before the Pats dropped a 25-23, 25-18 decision to the Wildcats.

In game two, Fleischman and Zalewski registered back-to-back kills to give the Pats a 5-3 lead. Stevenson led as late as 12-10 before the Wildcats pulled ahead to stay.

The seniors Antonijevic, Wu, Kravits and Gescheidle were named to the NSC all-conference team. Fleischman was an honorable mention selection.