Will Cook County News

By Claude Martinez.

Joliet – Volleyball 4 Veterans returned to Joliet on May 15 when the Joliet West High School Tigers (22-8; 8-1 SPC) traveled to fight the Joliet Central High School Steelmen (12-18; 2-7 SPC) in a Suburban Prairie Conference (SPC) match.

Before the game, both teams held a tribute to Army Staff Sergeant Jose Dueñez Jr., a former Steelman, who lost his life on March 31 during a training mission in Lithuania.

Both the Tigers and Steelmen joined hand in hand during the national anthem. This was the first time both teams held a Volley 4 Vets match in over seven years.

Once set one began, the Steelmen took a strong lead by capitalizing on errors. Once the game was tied at 15-15, Nolan Fellows made a push to give West the lead.

After a net violation by the Steelmen, Jonathan Rios dropped one over the net to keep Central in it. Right after, Luis Rivas went through the block to tie the game at 17-17.

Unfortunately, their next serve went out of bounds.

This is where senior Drew Johnson began to heat up, tapping the rock into the back row. From here, West would take a 25-21 win.

The second set was the opposite of the first. The Tigers pulled ahead early. Stars like Michael Meloy, Davide Giambagli, and Johnson took control to give them a second-set victory at 25-19.

FINAL: Joliet West 2, Joliet Central 0
Set 1: 25-21 | Set 2: 25-19

The WCCN Player of the Game was senior opposite hitter Drew Johnson, who had 10 kills on 28 attempts.

Watch the news package on YouTube (linked below), Facebook or Instagram @ Will Cook County News.

Special thank you to Kevin Fitzgerald (Joliet Central, Director of Athletics & Activities) Tara Litwicki (Joliet West head coach) & Nicholas Ratajczak (Joliet Central head coach).

For more news follow WCCN on Facebook, Instagram & YouTube @ Will Cook County News.