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Boys Volleyball: Twin Towers – Cade and Collin Harrison power streaking Wolves

Oswego East has won seven straight matches, takes West Aurora Invite title

Times two. The word on Oswego East's volleyball team is that facing their outside hitters is like going against the same person. They just switch front and back row. "Usually they say it's constant pounding," Collin Harrison said, "by the same person."

By Joshua Welge

Times two. The word on Oswego East's volleyball team is that facing their outside hitters is like going against the same person. They just switch front and back row. "Usually they say it's constant pounding," Collin Harrison said, "by the same person."

Not really, but close. Cade and Collin Harrison are identical twins, and twin 6-foot-2 outside hitters. And they're a huge reason why Oswego East is thinking big this spring. The Wolves are on a seven-match winning streak after rallying past Joliet West 22-25, 25-18, 25-17 on Tuesday in Oswego. Both Harrisons had seven kills in the win. "We're all pretty excited," Collin Harrison said, "but we know we can't let up. The moment we let up is the moment we lose it."

A win over the weekend, the championship of the West Aurora Invitational, was significant. It's Oswego East's first tournament championship other than IMSA. The Wolves (7-3) came back from down 23-17 in the third set to beat Glenbard North 19-25, 25-10, 26-24, then rallied from down 23-18 in the first set to beat West Aurora for the championship 25-23, 25-19. "They're something about them not quitting," Oswego East coach Brian Zerfas said. "The seniors know what to do, they run the huddle and they make the adjustments. This is a whole new level to go into a major tournament like West Aurora and to come from behind. It's a testament to these guys that have been so great since freshman year." Oswego East won just four matches five years ago.

The Harrisons have been twin pillars to a rebuild. They did every district sport together growing up. They tried basketball, and baseball. They wrestled together in junior high. Volleyball stuck. "It was just the environment we fell in love with," Collin Harrison said. "We weren't very good and we strived to get better." The connection is inherent, but also grew teaming up in club with the Cyclones.

"We know which balls we can't get to and which ones we can't," Cade Harrison said. "We have this, I'm not going to say telepathy but we know instinctively how we can play off of each other." Zerfas feels fortunate to have not one, but two building blocks like the twins. Their senior class won conference as freshmen, and JV as sophomores. The Harrisons have started on varsity since day one junior year. Just as important is how the twins have grown into ambassadors for the program. "One of the guys has picked up a freshman that didn't have a ride to practice. They've gone to the middle school program that started and helped with them. They are just around the program more than anyone else has been," Zerfas said. "They're really been that driving force. It's great when you got two instead of one, and they're just so fluid on the court. They're a great tandem." Indeed, it's hard for Zerfas and their Oswego East teammates to distinguish between the two.

"They have a lot of the same traits; it's just who has what on a given night," Zerfas said. "They're no one thing that one does better than the other. One will have a down day and the other rises up." "They both have the mindset that they want to get after the ball," Wolves' senior middle Jahari Winkfield said. "I've known for them so long, it's like a brotherhood." Oswego East's championship board is a blank slate, with no conference titles to speak of. Zerfas would love to change that. "Boy, oh boy would we like to sneak up on some people and do it," Zerfas said.