The Naperville North High School varsity girls volleyball team lost to crosstown rivals, the Naperville Central Redhawks, on Tuesday, Sept. 26.
The Huskies (2-1) lost to the Redhawks (2-1) after three close sets.
The first set started off a little slow for the Huskies. While North usually relies on their offensive attacks, Central was prepared and matched the energy at the net with strong offensive efforts of their own. A possible reason that North’s offense seemed off could be that they were trying a 6-2 rotation for the first time this season. With a 6-2 rotation, North is able to have two setters at play, providing more hitters at the net. However, this can also cause more confusion with the rotation and make the setters’ job arguably more difficult. These difficulties with the rotation caused too many errors, resulting in Naperville Central winning 25-21. Senior Simi Kapustova reflects on the reasons the Huskies employed a 6-2 and how it affected them throughout the game.
“We were out of rotation a couple of times but I think we’re still trying to adjust and find ways to score on a 6-2, we like that we have three hitters and three options and we can run more things but I think just being able to connect more on those [offensive plays] was the problem,” Kapustova said.
After losing the first set, the Huskies fought hard to stay in the game. Although there were still many errors made, the Huskies became more accustomed to the rotation throughout the second set, allowing their offense to be more diverse and powerful in its plays. Senior Liz Rossi reflects on how the team was feeling, knowing that it would be difficult against Central.
“I think we were feeling super pumped up, I think we knew that this was going to be a good team, and it was gonna give us a lot of competition and we were gonna have to fight really hard to get points,” Rossi said.
With this spirit in mind, the Huskies fought point for point throughout the second set. This strong mentality helped them to win 25-18.
Although the Huskies tried to carry this vigorous spirit on to the third set, their continuous errors just made it impossible to get a lead over the Redhawks. Ultimately, North’s mistakes allowed Central to beat them, 25-17 in the final set. Kapustova emphasizes how the mistakes were the ultimate reason the Huskies were held back from closing out the game.
“Overall we have the skill, we have the talent, we have the work, it’s just fixing those little things on our side, we didn’t make the home stretch because of those little errors,” Kapustova said.
Although the loss against Central wasn’t what the Huskies hoped for, they continue to have a positive attitude for their big game later this week against Metea Valley High School. Kapustova explained how the team is excited to be playing such a big conference match on the home court.
“Metea is gonna be a big competition this year but we’re excited it’s a home environment and we’re ready to win this week,” Kapustova said.
The game is expected to show some fierce competition. The Metea Valley Mustangs lost in two sets to Neuqua earlier this week, however, North beat Neuqua in just two sets last Thursday. It is unclear how this history will play out in the game on Thursday. Regardless, the Huskies look forward to another conference match.
The Huskies play Waubonsie Valley on Tuesday, Oct. 3. The game is scheduled to begin at 5:30 p.m. at Naperville North High School.
