Oak Lawn Spartan Girls Volleyball Off To Hot Start

OAK LAWN, IL — Last year the Oak Lawn Community High School girls volleyball team burst onto the scene with tremendous success. The Spartans won the Fenton Bison Blast-Off Tournament and went on to win the South Suburban Conference Red championship. With a strong core from that team returning, things looked bright for this season.

However, the Spartans took nothing for granted and realized this is a new year and a new team. There was no complacency, and they worked hard to prepare for this season. They have won their first 12 games, and they are moving up the rankings in the Daily Southtown. The new season did not start without its bumps though.

“The first two weeks of practice were actually really surprising and played a key role in our team
development,” OLCHS head coach Kathleen Miller said. “A lot of people may be surprised to learn that our first two weeks of practice were a struggle, and there were many days where the team was frustrated and struggling to perform at a high level. We had many team and individual discussions during this time, and I think struggling early helped the team take a step forward in learning how to overcome adversity while maintaining their support for one another.”

Earlier this season the Spartans won the Fenton Bison Blast-Off Tournament for a second year in a row, and the team remains unbeaten in SSC play thus far. The senior captains of Kaitlyn Berkery, Sinead Conroy, and Amina Maali, who is verbally committed to Roberts Wesleyan University in New York, are each leading the team in their own ways.

“Kaitlyn is a workhorse—she leads by example and works tirelessly in practice and matches,” Miller said. “Sinead brings a competitive intensity that elevates everyone around her—she maintains a consistent energy and sets a high standard for our team. Amina consistently communicates on the court and has been instrumental in advancing the level of play of the entire team.”

This year’s version of the Spartans may even be better than last year’s version. That can be attributed to the attitude of each player and the team as a whole.

“This team is a tight-knit group that really feels like a family,” Miller said. “They celebrate each other’s successes, support one another during adversity, and genuinely enjoy being with each other. We make jokes that we can read each other’s minds, but it really does feel like we are tuned in to the same frequency. One of our team goals was to cherish every moment together, and we are making sure to do so because this group is really special and so much fun to be around.”

Other standouts for the Spartans this year are Carthage College-commit-commit, senior Hailey Wierzgac, senior Emma McAuliffe, junior Maryam Hussein, and setter Kasey Thompson.

“We have been fortunate to have an excellent returning core who is hungry for success,” Miller said. “This group wants to continue building off last year’s success; however, it was key that they acknowledged that this season is a fresh start. While our roster may be similar to last year, our identity is different, and I believe we have greatly improved and changed our style of play from last season by having a more efficient offense combined with relentless defensive effort. It’s been important for the team to enjoy the early success but remain humble and continue to get better every day.”

This weekend the Spartans will face their toughest tests of the year in the Spartan Classic, in Spartan Gymnasium at Oak Lawn. The tournament is this Friday and Saturday. Oak Lawn is aiming to continue its climb to the top.

~ Contributed by Brian Frangella, OLCHS Feature Writer