Glenbard West continues run of excellence, places runner-up to Marist at state

HOFFMAN ESTATES – How incredible has the Glenbard West boys volleyball run of 11 consecutive Final Four appearances been?

The Hilltoppers were defeated Saturday evening by the score of 25-20, 25-20 by Marist in the state title match at Hoffman Estates High School – and it’s only the second time during the remarkable 11-season stretch that Glenbard West has ended its season with a loss.

But there was little disappointment since the Hilltoppers weren’t expected to even be there.

“At the start of the year, no one thought we’d be here,” Glenbard West senior outside hitter Charlie Clifford said. “But we worked our butts off all year, no one worked harder. We’re an excellent program, and we got back here.”

Clifford was the only full-time starter back from the 2024 squad, which placed third. He led the team with eight kills in the title match, while junior middle hitter Otis Yahn contributed six kills.

Seniors Luke Bachman on the outside and Ryan Gritis in the middle added three kills each, while junior setter Andrew Fanella recorded 12 assists and senior setter Owen Bare added 10 assists and six digs.

“That was pretty awesome,” Yahn said of playing in a state title match. “Not many expected us to be here or get this far, but we did. I think we had a lot more community this season. We cared about each other and had a lot of fun.”

The Hilltoppers (36-6) did that. But the bottom line was that Marist (40-2) was too strong. This marked back-to-back titles for the RedHawks, who were considered the top team in the state all season, and whose only two losses were to out-of-state teams.

As usual, seniors Christian Teresi (14 kills, 15 assists) at setter/right-side and Nate Toth (11 kills) at outside led Marist. Senior setter Jacob Finley (18 assists, six digs) and senior outside hitter Devlin Biggs (five kills) were came up big for the RedHawks.

The opening set was some high-impact action as there were 13 ties and four lead changes through 14-14. Then Teresi capped off a 6-1 run with a trio of kills. The Hilltoppers crept back to 22-20, but Biggs banged a kill, and two Glenbard West errors ended it.

There were eight ties in the second set, but the Hilltoppers never led. The last tie was 16-16, and once again the RedHawks had a 6-1 burst. Glenbard West never got closer than four the rest of the way. Marist has won five state championships (2002, 2010, 2019, 2024 and 2025).

The Hilltoppers also have five titles, all of them coming between 2015-2023. They have four third-place trophies, and this is their second runner-up finish. The other was a 25-21, 25-23 loss to Marist in 2019.

“I’m super proud of these kids,” Glenbard West coach Christine Giunta-Mayer said. “They are a high-caliber group that trusted the process. We got here and have no regrets.

This was the Hilltoppers’ third loss to Marist this season.

“Jordan and I go back and forth, and we want to compete with someone who goes as hard as they do,” Giunta-Mayer said of Marist coach Jordan Vidovic. “We were thrilled we were here, and I’m super proud.”

In their semifinal on Saturday morning, the Hilltoppers defeated O’Fallon 25-17, 25-8 behind 10 kills from Clifford and four each from Bachman and freshman right-side hitter Lukas Wallin.

“I’ve been friends with a lot of those guys through club for years,” Clifford said of the RedHawks. “They have a great team, and it’s an honor to play against them.

“But what I’ll remember most is this program of ours. It’s been a source of consistency in my life to have this family here. It’s really helped me.”