Sports
Chicago Christian Wins Tinley Park Volleyball Invitational
Knights bounce back from rough second game, defeat Illiana Christian in three sets to take title.
A fresh beginning is usually good for a team struggling.
Good thing for the Chicago Christian girls' volleyball team they got a fresh start in the last game of the championship match of the 33rd annual Tinley Park volleyball invitational.
After struggling in Game 2 against Illiana Christian, the Knights won the last game 25-20 and took the championship.
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"They had their lulls in the game," Chicago Christian coach James Garcia said. "But for them to be able to pull it all together in the end, it's huge for us."
Chicago Christian won the first game of the championship match handily, 25-16. Illiana Christian, however, came out strong in the second game, building a 9-1 lead before taking the game 25-8.
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"We play as a team, we bond as a team," Illiana coach Nikki Van Dyke said. "And we don't lie over and die for any team, so it doesn't surprise me we came out and won that second game."
Chicago Christian, however, found its composure and began competing again in the third game. The score was knotted at 11 when Emily Lindemulder had a block to give the Knights a 12-11 advantage. They would build that lead to 20-15 before taking the game and the match.
Chicago Christian improved to 17-7 with the win, while Illiana Christian fell to 21-4.
In the third-place match, Peotone outlasted Oak Lawn 25-23, 27-25.
"I think the team stepped up," Peotone coach Kathy Barger said. "They're all taking care of business and that's what it takes."
Tinley Park was 1-2 on the day, but Coach Lee Rucinski took away some positives.
"We competed with teams that are in the best in the area," Rucinski said of his Titans (7-18).
"We played in a tournament last weekend where we just got destroyed, against lesser competition," he said. "So, the girls really took a step up this past week to play. I'm pretty happy about that."
Rucinski was particularly impressed with the play of a couple of his regulars.
"Kayla Furjanic really stepped up as an outside hitter," he said. "She's our energy girl and she's our biggest hitter. And, then our middle, Liz Kopecky. She put a lot of balls down today that helped bring us back in rallies."
Bremen finished 0-3 in the tournament.
Madison Kamp and Becky DeRuiter of Chicago Christian were named to the all-tournament team. The Titans were represented by Furjanic, while Oak Lawn had two girls selected--Keely Murtaugh and Kelly Foley.
