Most of the Hoffman Estates High School boys volleyball team will be making their third appearance at the state tournament this weekend. But this time they won’t be selling programs or chasing down balls.
Hoffman Estates, the state tournament host for the last eight years, finally made the cut for its own party. Other players will have to work at the tournament because these Hawks, at long last, are going to play.
“I’ve been working it since my freshman year,” junior Scott Lanctot said. “It was always tough to watch them play and see how much fun they were having out there. Being part of it has been my goal for a long time.”
Hoffman Estates earned its first quarterfinal berth after a thrilling and somewhat surprising playoff run that saw it upend the Tribune’s top-ranked team, Hersey, before beating second-seeded Glenbrook South in the sectional final Saturday.
Home-court advantage
Forget about going Downstate. The Hawks are going down the street.
“It’s nice to have home-court advantage,” coach Dawn Shepherd said. “But some of the kids were kind of disappointed. They were like, `Can we just stay at a hotel for two days? Can we take a bus ride somewhere?’ We’re thinking about getting a bus and picking them up at their houses and driving around the block a couple times.”
Yet Adam Plach, a 6-foot-6-inch senior middle blocker, is thrilled about playing at home.
“It’s great knowing we’ll have a huge crowd,” said Plach, who has worked the tournament since his freshman year. “I think we’re all a little surprised we’re here. We all set our goals to make it to state, but for it to actually happen is a little bit of a surprise.”
The Hawks (29-9) weren’t expected to make it to the state quarterfinals. Their season was presumed to be over by many in the sectional semifinals, where they played Hersey last Friday. But Hoffman Estates shocked Hersey with a 15-13, 12-15, 15-10 victory. The next day the fourth-seeded Hawks defeated Glenbrook South 14-16, 15-9, 15-4 to win the Schaumburg sectional championship–their first sectional title.
“There’s no better feeling than beating the No. 1 team in the state,” Lanctot said. “It has been a great week.”
A look at the players
The Hawks’ success centers on Plach, who leads the team with 287 kills, 129 blocks and 53 service aces. Lanctot and senior Kevin Hartleben, both under 6 feet tall, have been effective outside hitters. Lanctot leads the team with 441 digs to go along with 249 kills and 54 blocks. Hartleben has 388 digs and 214 kills.
Hoffman Estates’ offense starts with setters Greg Noonkester (623 assists), a junior, and senior Spero Mandakas (416 assists). Bill Slovick (173 kills, 81 blocks) and Nick Hoppesch (97 kills, 61 blocks), both juniors, are right side hitters. Dan Scott, a senior middle blocker, has tallied 136 kills and 68 blocks.
The fact that the Hawks will play Lyons Township on Friday in the quarterfinals comes as a mild surprise to Shepherd, especially after her team endured a mid-season slump when they went 1-4 at the Prospect Tournament. Riding a 12-game win streak heading into the Prospect Tournament, Hoffman Estates received a wake-up call.
“After that 1-4 turn at Prospect, I didn’t know if we could rebound from it,” Shepherd said. “They kind of thought they could turn it on and off whenever they wanted to. Maybe it was the driving force that told them that they needed to get it together.”
A lot of 3-game matches
The Hawks have come together, particularly in hard-fought three-game matches. They have played 15 three-game matches this season and have won 10 of their last 11, including their last two.
“We have the confidence, stamina and endurance to get through those three-game matches,” Shepherd said.
If the Hawks get by Lyons Township on Friday, they are hoping they make quicker work of Saturday’s semifinals and final matches. Hoffman Estates’ prom is Saturday night.
“I’m hoping we’re late,” Lanctot said of prom. “I’m not sure my date is, but I’m hoping we’re late.”
