Mundelein sees positives in season-opening loss

The Mundelein volleyball team has no intention of pushing the panic button after a season-opening 25-19, 25-23 loss to visiting Glenbrook North on Wednesday.

"I told the team we have over 30 matches left," coach George Dressen Jr. said. "The mistakes we made were fixable. Other than the loss, a lot of positive things happened that we can build on."

Dressen could afford to be philosophical since many of the mistakes can be attributed to first-match jitters.

Just ask Glenbrook North coach Chris Cooper. The play of Glenbrook North bore little resemblance to the way it looked Tuesday in a season-opening loss against Warren.

"We had played one match and that made us more relaxed," Copper said. "Mundelein was tense and made some mistakes they probably won't make later in the year. We were more consistent and we limited our passing errors. That was the big difference."

Mundelein junior middle blocker Michelle Parssinen made the most of her opportunities. She had 5 kills in 7 attempts and 3 blocks.

"We were looking to get her the ball more, but she did well with her (chances)," Dressen said.

Parssinen serves for her club team, but this was the first time she served in a varsity match.

Based one her performance, it certainly won't be the last. She was 7 of 8 serving with 1 ace.

"I love serving," Parssinen said. "I use a float serve and it has a lot of movement."

Mundelein trailed 18-17 in the first game before fading. After falling behind 15-8 in the second game, the Mustangs began to rally. They strung seven points together to tie the score. Mundelein pulled to 22-22 on a block by junior Kailey Hinchman, but Glenbrook North scored the final three points.

Mundelein junior Brittany Jones flashed her potential by contributing 4 kills and 3 digs. Senior Jennifer Davis had 2 kills and 2 aces.