Here are previews of boys volleyball teams from around the Kane County Chronicle area.
Geneva
The Vikings, under 10th-year coach Stephanie Hennig, were 18-15 overall and 1-5 in the DuKane Conference with their season ending with a loss to St. Charles North in the regional quarterfinals.
Returners include seniors Henry Sartell (Augustana), Jack Rodenbostel (Lake Forest) and Landon Prysmiki (Dominican) along with junior Nick Norkus.
“We have another hard schedule,” Hennig said. “All our opponents are tough. We are excited to compete. We want to have a better record than last year. We are committed to continuous growth.”
St. Charles East
The Saints return five senior starters from a 2025 team that posted a 26-12 overall mark, 2-4 in the DuKane Conference before losing to conference foe Wheaton Warrenville South in the regional championship.
Seniors Zack Heilers (all-conference, all-IVCA all-academic team), Ethan Perkins (Concordia University Irvine), Josh Trentham, Keegan Suessen and Anthony Sylvester return joined by juniors Camden Bolster, Parker Eisenmenger and Joe Hisel and freshman Liam Bishop.
“We want to improve on a 2-4 conference record from last year,” Saints coach Matt Caputo said. “We have several key starters back and some strong newcomers. We want to pick up where we left off last year, our strongest season ever.”
St. Charles North
The North Stars (20-15) return seniors Cooper Meades, Alex Kinzle, Tomas Makishima and Nolan Wallace, and juniors Logan Haycraft and Tyler Custer. Freshman Hieu Nguyen is a newcomer to watch.
“We want a better conference showing,” North coach Jamie Buhnerkemper said. ”This year’s schedule we don’t have any back-to-back matches."
St. Francis
The Spartans were 14-23 last year and 5-3 in the rugged Catholic League, good enough for second place.
Seniors Peter Zgutowicz, Mateo Casmiro, Luke Davis, Liam Smith and Garrity Bennett return along with junior George Onorski and sophomore Michael Thang.
Coach Mike Lynch adds juniors Jack Shannon, Augustine Cin, Abraham Kap, Cin Chai and Jackson Blaha and freshman Evan King to the roster.
“We have growth, depth and work ethic and are able to compete at a high level,” said Lynch. “We are poised to make a run in the state playoffs. We are excited to see where this group is headed. We are still a relatively young team. We have more polished and confident players who will be tested though the conference and will play some of the top teams in the state.”
West Aurora
Back for West Aurora, who finished third in the UEC West last year, are seniors Liam Norris and Richard Jiminez, juniors Jesus Galvan, Leonel Sanchez, Will Johnson and Jonathan Lowe and sophomore Reznor Orebaugh.
“We have a lot of first-year varsity players,” Blackhawks coach Grant Marlowe said. “We are striving for improvement and growth. We want to be in position for some wins in the playoffs.”
https://www.dailyherald.com/20260325/boys-volleyball/scouting-the-dupage-county-and-fox-valley-boys-volleyball-season/