Girls volleyball: Willowbrook sweeps Joliet West for Class 4A Bolingbrook Supersectional title

BOLINGBROOK – Entering the Class 4A Bolingbrook Supersectional on Nov. 3, neither Joliet West nor Willowbrook had ever advanced to the state finals.

Both teams had been on the supersectional stage before – Joliet West last season and Willowbrook two seasons ago.

It was understandable that there would be some nerves.

Willowbrook (39-1), however, showed little sign of jitters and the Warriors earned their first state appearance with a 25-18, 25-14 win over the Tigers (36-4).

“We’ve never done this before,” said Willowbrook senior Calli Kenny, who forms a formidable one-two punch with her sister, Hannah, a junior. “It really hasn’t sunken in yet. It’s kind of surreal. I can’t describe it.

“We were really confident after our win against Oak Park-River Forest [for the sectional title Nov. 1] and we were all super focused for this match. We were confident at the start and getting off to a strong start gave us more confidence.”

“We’ve never done this before. It really hasn’t sunken in yet. It’s kind of surreal. I can’t describe it.

—  Calli Kenny, Willowbrook senior

The Warriors, who will play Benet (38-2) at 7 p.m. Friday in a Class 4A state semifinal at CEFCU Arena in Normal, were in control for most of the match against Joliet West, breaking an early 5-5 tie in the first set and going on a 4-0 run that included kills from Calli Kenny and Lily Javier for a 9-5 lead. Joliet West countered with a 6-2 spurt before Willowbrook, behind the serving of Anna Marinier, scored the next seven points. Marinier had three aces in the run for the Warriors.

“We focused on mental toughness,” Willowbrook coach Irene Mason said. “The girls stepped up and were prepared. In a match like this, a lot of time the first team that settles in comes out ahead and our girls settled in pretty quickly.

“I am proud of the way the girls worked together. If anyone made an error, they shook it off and the next person would make a play. It’s been that way all season. We can’t do this without everyone on the team knowing and playing their roles.”

Joliet West, which won its second straight sectional title and set a program record for wins in a season, showed a spark late, getting kills from Ava Grevengoed (10 kills) and Peyton Darguzis (3 kills) and a four-hit violation on Willowbrook to close to within 22-18. The Tigers got no closer in the first set, however, as Willowbrook scored the final three points, including a kill by Calli Kenny (8 kills).

“The last few weeks we have really come along as a team,” Kenny said. “This was a whole team effort. We showed that we aren’t just a two-man show. Everyone stepped up and played great tonight. Once we got the momentum, we weren’t going to give it up.”

The momentum carried over into the second set as the Warriors got two kills from Hannah Kenny (7 kills) and one each by Calli Kenny and Elle Bruschuk to grab a 5-2 lead and put the Tigers in catch-up mode. The Willowbrook lead increased to 14-8 before Joliet West got an ace by Julia Adams. Willowbrook got two kills each from Marinier and Hannah Kenny to take a 18-12 lead. The advantage swelled to 23-13 on a free ball kill by Javier before Natalia Harris (4 kills) got a kill for Joliet West’s final point of the season.

Despite the loss, Joliet West coach Chris Lincoln couldn’t be prouder of his team.

“I couldn’t have asked for a better season,” he said. “It’s disappointing to lose, but Willowbrook is a very good team and they played very clean volleyball. It’s hard to beat a team when they play like that. The Kenny sisters are so good and they are fun to watch, but not so fun when you are on the other side of the net.

“This team has had so many successes this year. Back-to-back sectional titles for the first time ever, a program record for wins, the first Southwest Prairie Conference championship. There’s a lot for these girls to be proud of.”

https://www.shawlocal.com/the-herald-news/sports/2023/11/04/girls-volleyball-willowbrook-sweeps-joliet-west-for-class-4a-bolingbrook-supersectional-title/