Kit Girls Turn Up The Heat In Volleyball Debut

Last year’s three-set victory over Maine East in the season opener didn’t lead to much success for the Evanston girls volleyball team.

The Wildkits started 2024 Monday against the same foe hoping to write a new script.

Impressive in just about every phase of the game, the Kits scored a solid 25-15, 25-15 victory over the Blue Demons and made it a successful debut for new head coach (and long-time assistant) Mike McDermott.

In a match originally scheduled for ancient Beardsley Gymnasium, and moved to the air-conditioned facility at Maine East because of extreme heat in the Chicago area, the Wildkits still felt the need to turn up the heat on the hosts.

They did that at the service line --- scoring 6 aces in the first set and 4 more in the second set --- and set the tone on offense with a couple of early kills from 6-foot-1 sophomore Norah Williams, who was making her varsity debut.

Senior Kylie O’Connor was credited with a team-high 6 kills and Siena Bowen contributed 4 aces to help close out the second set and lay a solid foundation for the Kits to build on going forward.

“There was a lot to like tonight, especially with the way our young kids played so well,” McDermott said. “We didn’t expect the offense we got from Norah and we didn’t know we were going to need Siena in the back row, because we didn’t even know we were going to play a 5-1 (offense) tonight.

”I have to say I was glad that we switched locations because I didn’t exactly want to play in Beardsley with a heat warning out there. I was looking forward to playing here. Last year we squeaked out a three-set win over them, but this year we played a ton better. Now we’re hyped up about the rest of the season, even though we know we still have a lot of work to do.”

McDermott had planned to use a mostly 6-2 attack this fall and still might lean that way. But he had to switch to Plan B when the change in venues caused starting setter Lina Hauser to arrive late due to a work commitment.

But with junior Casey McDermott picking up the slack at setter, the Wildkits only trailed 1-0 in the first set and 6-3 in the second set before pulling away to win.

Williams made an impression in her first varsity start, with 4 kills, and while Bowen did see some limited varsity action after being promoted from the JV squad late last year, she also made an impact for the first time.

“Norah was a hitter on the freshman team that you didn’t notice, except for the fact that she’s so tall. She’s really improved a lot,” McDermott pointed out. “She came out and made swings that were on time, for the most part, and I thought her blocking in the second set really changed the momentum there. We didn’t expect that much offense from her.

“We really needed Siena in the back row tonight, and she was amazing with her defense and her serving. She always brings a lot of energy, she just needs to refine her technique a bit (to earn more playing time).”

Evanston reclaimed the momentum midway through the second set behind senior Sofia Lindroth, whose passing was almost flawless on the night. Her kill at the net lifted ETHS to a 12-10 lead, and the Kits tacked on three consecutive points with Lindroth at the service line to pull away to a 16-11 advantage.

An exchange of missed service by the two teams left ETHS on top 21-15, and Bowen muscled up with four straight serves that were too hot to handle and delivered the win.

Evanston resumes action Friday and Saturday at the Libertyville Invitational tournament. The Kits will compete in pool play at Warren on Friday against Lake Zurich, Glenbrook South and Lakes.