Lincoln-Way East’s Trey Marek grew up playing baseball.
He said he was pretty good at it. But one day his interest in the sport changed.
“I got bored with baseball,” he said. “I woke up one day and said I would try out for my eighth grade volleyball team (at Summit Hill).
“And I kind of loved the sport since then.”
The junior outside hitter has found his niche.
Marek was a key on both offense and defense Tuesday night with six kills and six digs, lifting the Griffins to a 25-19, 25-17 SouthWest Suburban Conference win over host Lockport.
Matthew Muehlnickel added six kills for Lincoln-Way East (14-3, 1-1). Tyler Walenga had five kills and four digs, Joey Glennon tallied five kills and Brenden Reutter recorded 24 assists.
Josh Bluhm led Lockport (16-5, 0-2) with six kills. Wade Welke added four kills and Evan Dziadkowiec came up with 19 assists.
For the 6-foot-1 Marek, his rise in volleyball has been swift.
Last summer, he played club for Ultimate and was named to the all-tournament team at the AAU nationals in Orlando. He’s still easing his way into varsity life for the Griffins.
“He’s springy and one heck of an athlete,” Lincoln-Way East coach Kris Fiore said of Marek. “With him, it was a matter of getting reps and getting comfortable. He can hit different shots and not just rely on his athleticism to get kills.
“Last year on the JV team, he could jump over kids. Now, you’re at a different level. The players are bigger and more athletic across the net. You are going to have to become more of a compete player. I think he’s turning the corner.”
This rivalry ratcheted up in 2021 when the two teams met in the quarterfinals of the state tournament, with the Griffins pulling off a 21-25, 25-21, 15-19 victory before finishing fourth.
Earlier this year, Lincoln-Way East sweated out a 23-25, 25-22, 25-22 victory in the semifinals at the Marist Invitational.
This looked like it was shaping up to be another tight battle, with the Griffins clinging to a 13-12 lead in the first game before taking off.
Lockport committed seven serving errors in the second game.
“We were hitting over .400 and then we were stuck in row one and they rattled off four or five points,” Lockport coach Nick Mraz said of the first game. “We got flustered from there and that carried over in the second set.”
As a result, the Porters will take a two-match losing streak in this weekend’s Lincoln-Way East Invitational, where wins won’t come easily.
The Porters’ pool Friday features Willowbrook and defending Indiana state champion Roncalli.
“This tournament is so strong that the Silver Division is going to be better than most Gold divisions,” Mraz said.
Meanwhile, Lincoln-Way East wasn’t happy with a three-match stretch that saw the Griffins lose to Barrington and Lincoln-Way West and make 40 errors in a 25-22, 19-25, 25-20 win Monday over Wheaton Warrenville South.
“Our coaches told us we need to take this like it’s a business,” Marek said. “It’s like, get in, get out and beat the teams you should beat.
“I honestly thought this game (Lockport) was going to be tight the whole time. Once we got the lead, our team was coming back together and we were all staying focused.”
And Marek was one of the players in the middle of it all.
“He brings a lot to this team,” Muehlnickel said of Marek. “He’s definitely a hard hitter and plays great defense. He can hit from the back row and the front row and is a good blocker.
“Definitely an all-around player.”
Jeff Vorva is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.
