Boys Volleyball: Geneva comes back, beats Maine West to win its invitational

There was no doubt in the mind of Stephanie Hennig.

Even though Geneva lost the first set to Maine West 25-19, the Vikings coach maintained positive vibes.

The Vikings rallied to win the second and third sets 25-20, 15-13 to defeat the Warriors in the championship match of the Geneva Invitational Saturday.

The Vikings (14-9 overall, 5-0 in the tournament) defeated West Chicago, Glenbard South and Payton Prep in pool play.

Geneva advanced to the finals with a 25-14, 25-15 semifinal win over Harlem.

“We just had to reset after the first game,” Hennig said. “I knew we were tired but I wanted to stay positive. I knew the team wanted to win their home tournament. It is nice to have 10 seniors out of 12 players on the team.”

There were five lead changes early in the second set before Geneva broke a 10-10 deadlock with a 5-0 run spearheaded by three kills and an ace by senior Daniel Youman. With Geneva leading 15-10, the Warriors rallied to tie the game at 18-18 on an ace by Andrew Cedeno.

The Vikings responded with a 6-2 run to take a 24-20 advantage. An ace by Charlie Sexton at set point forced a third set.

Maine West got off to a good start in the decisive third set.

A kill by Marek Czerlonko gave the Warriors (20-9) an 11-6 lead. The Vikings went on a 7-2 surge to tie it at 13-13.

Kills by Jack Mally and Youman gave the Vikes the match and the championship.

Youman led the Vikes with 17 kills, three blocks and two aces. Mally contributed 10 kills with two blocks and three aces while Colin Kelly collected five kills and three blocks for the winners.

“We didn’t get down after the first game,” Kelly said. “They (Maine West) played phenomenal in the first game. We fell short in a few tournaments this year, so we really wanted to win our own tournament. We feel like we are playing well with the regionals coming up. We are all friends on the team. We have great chemistry.”

Czerlonko and Marcin Siergiej led the Warriors with nine kills apiece. Larelle Potts collected five kills with three blocks.

“We are a young and inexperienced team and are still growing,” Maine West coach Mike OBrill said.

“This is a very competitive group. Our passing hurts us at times. We had a had a great tournament.”

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