Will Cook County News

By Claude Martinez.

Palos Heights – It was the final night for the No. 4 seed Trinity Christian College Trolls (14-15, 12-6 CCAC) volleyball team as they hosted the No. 5 seed Governors State University Jaguars (11-22, 10-8 CCAC) in the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference Quarterfinals on November 11, 2025.

The Trolls and Jaguars had split their two regular-season meetings, each winning once. But this night carried far more weight as both teams were fighting to keep their playoff hopes alive. In the end, Trinity Christian made an impressive comeback, battling all the way to a 3-2 victory.

Set Scores: 25-16, 18-25, 21-25, 25-14, 15-12

Stat Leaders

Governors State University:
Freshman outside hitter Greta Bochert recorded a double-double with 15 kills and 17 digs.

Trinity Christian College:
Senior setter Sharide Sykes tallied another triple-double with 10 kills, 28 assists, and 15 digs. She was named the WCCN Player of the Game, becoming the first back-to-back recipient of the award since the Will Cook County News began the honor in 2024. (Read more about Sykes here.)

Senior outside hitter Sarah Neighbors notched a double-double with 16 kills, 12 digs, and 2 assists.

Senior opposite hitter Dej’a Williams added 13 kills and 1 dig.

Both Neighbors and Williams have been with the program all four years, and after the match, they reflected on their journey from freshmen to senior leaders guiding their team to a playoff victory.

“I think ever since freshman year, I’ve just wanted to show out for my girls,” Neighbors said. “It’s never for me. It’s for my girls, for my family, and for the Lord. That’s what has gotten me through all four years. I just wanted to prove to everyone and myself that we’re more than capable of doing that.”

Adding, Williams spoke about what the win meant to the team. “We all just wanted it,” she said. “We proved to ourselves and the Trinity community that we could do it. They had our back, so we wanted to make sure we had theirs.”

The Trinity crowd also played a crucial role in the energy and intensity of the match.

“I think Trinity shutting down definitely hurt all of us tremendously because we’re truly a community,” said Williams. “We uplift each other and hold each other to such high standards. They (the fans) came out and showed out for us. Like I said, we wanted to show out for them no matter what.”

She smiled as she added, “I want to shout out my mom. I’m going to shout out everyone. This was just an amazing game. I’m so proud of everybody.”

Williams also reflected on her teammate Neighbors and their growth together over four years.

“Sarah’s literally my girl. She’s been here with me since day one, all four years,” Williams said. “I’m just so proud of the athlete she’s grown into. She’s always been amazing. She goes out there and proves to us, especially to our younger girls, that it doesn’t take a lot to be an amazing teammate and to go out there and show what you’ve got, and she does it every single time.”

Before the match, the Trolls knew they had to contain Jaguars freshman standout Greta Bochert. Neighbors shared a bit about their strategy.

“I think we just knew we had to shut down their hitters fast,” she said. “She’s (Bochert) a freshman from Germany, she’s a powerhouse, and we had to shut her down on the right side. So Dej’a (Williams), Sharide (Sykes), Kenzie (Makenzie Ritsema), and Aolani (Cannon) really stepped up. Even though we didn’t stop her every time, we were slowing her down, and that’s exactly what we needed to do.”

Neighbors also took a moment to thank the fans after their final home game. “This was just the best game, and the crowd was the best. I couldn’t have ended it on a better note,” she said.

The Trinity Christian College Trolls will now head on the road to face the No. 1 seed Viterbo University V-Hawks (25-6, 18-0 CCAC) in La Crosse, Wisconsin, on Thursday, November 13.

Here are some highlights of the Trolls quarterfinal win which can be viewed on YouTube (linked below), Facebook or Instagram @ Will Cook County News.

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