Johnson, CL South tip Dundee-Crown
Erin Johnson entered the 2007 season as one of the top hitters in the Fox Valley Conference.
Along with being a top-notch hitter, Johnson is also a powerful server capable of racking up numerous aces.
The Crystal Lake South junior middle hitter delivered 9 kills, registered 8 blocks and served 5 aces as the Gators knocked off Dundee-Crown 25-15, 25-27, 25-21 in a Fox Valley Conference Valley Division match held in Carpentersville Tuesday.
"I had a bad shoulder last year and couldn't serve," said Johnson. "I really worked on my serve in the off-season."
South coach Laura Jensen has seen Johnson emerge as a total player.
"It hurt us not to have Erin serve last year," said Jensen. "She is a dominant player in the middle but she has worked hard to become a very good server."
Led by Johnson, the Gators (9-4, 3-0) blitzed the Chargers early in Game 1.
The South junior hammered 5 kills with 4 blocks and 3 aces to propel the Gators to a 14-5 advantage.
The Chargers (13-5, 1-2) never really challenged the Gators in Game 1.
A kill by Morgan Kilberger gave the Gators a 1-0 lead in the match.
In Game 2, the Chargers upped the intensity level. jumping off to a 10-6 lead after a kill by Amanda Lutzow.
South battled back and tied the game at 22 on a kill by Johnson.
The game was tied at 23 and 25 before the Chargers scored the final 2 points capped by a kill from Stephanie Thorson.
In Game 3, the Gators went most of the way without Kilberger, who was bothered by an eye Injury.
Paced by Caitlin Schumacher (4 kills) and Katie Trayser (3 kills) the Gators got off to a 15-7 advantage.
But, the Chargers wouldn't give up without a fight as D-C climbed to within a point of the Gators, 17-16 after a kill by Kathleen Collingbourne.
South took control of the match with 2 blocks from Johnson and a kill by Kilberger to give the Gators a 20-16 advantage.
Crystal Lake South scored the final 2 points on a kill and an ace by Schumacher.
Johnson's effort was backed by Trayser, who had 8 kills and 5 blocks. Kilberger, who entered Game 3 for the Gators' last 7 points, had 6 kills.
Lutzow paced the Chargers with 13 kills..
"We were on our heels in the first game, but we passed better and played better in the second and third games," said D-C coach Tracy Williams. "We had better focus. "
WW South d. Naperville North: The Wheaton Warrenville South girls volleyball team played like it was not going to be denied.
The powerful Tigers defended their home court with a strong defensive effort, turning back Naperville North 25-22, 25-19 in a DuPage Valley Conference showdown for first place Tuesday night before a large and loud crowd in Wheaton.
The teams came in ranked 1-2 in the Daily Herald Top 20, with Naperville North holding the top spot.
With the victory, WW South (17-1, 7-0) avenged a three-game loss to Naperville North (16-2, 6-1) at the DuPage Area Tournament on Sept. 15.
"From the first time we played them they played a much better match," Huskies coach Jennifer Urban said. "The first time we played them we scored a lot on their errors and tonight I think they played a lot better defense, and they earned their points."
WW South senior outside hitter Becca Zlabis said the home fans raised her team's intensity.
"I think the crowd was great and I really think that that picked us up," said Zlabis, who blasted 13 kills to go along with 2 blocks and 2 aces. "We were just ready to beat them. We didn't want them to beat us again so we played our hearts out."
Naperville North's Colleen Ward got her kills with 12, but the Tigers made it difficult for the other Huskies to put down balls with consistency. Katie Kane, Monika Stanciauskas and Zlabis helped the home team form a wall at the net.
"They did a great job blocking," Urban said. "We didn't just set Colleen, but they put up a great block. They scored a lot of points off their block."
The first game saw 11 ties, the last one at 22. The Tigers pulled out the opener by scoring the next 3 points when Mollie Kolosky skied to bury an overpass, Annie Luhrsen lined a wicked kill and Kaitlyn Graham served an ace.
Naperville North jumped ahead 13-7 in Game 2, but WW South answered with a big run. The Tigers scored 13 of the next 16 points -- triggered by back-to-back blocks by Dayana Rodriguez and Luhrsen before Zlabis smacked 3 kills -- to pull ahead 20-16.
Shortly thereafter, a Zlabis kill and two straight errors by the Huskies gave WW South the match.
"I thought defensively we did a great job tonight and I thought we did a pretty good job from the service line," Tigers coach Bill Schreier said. "I thought we were pretty aggressive and we were able to get them out of system enough where (Ward) wasn't as comfortable as she could be."
Megan Hecker paced the Tigers in digs with 7.
-- Dave Miller