The St. Louis U. High varsity volleyball team was hard at work over the Easter break, picking away teams as it scrapes forward on the path to a state title. The Jr. Bills have played five games since the last article, and dominated just about every one; the closest set—against Marquette—ended with SLUH ahead by six points. 

The very best diggers in the school have yet to drop a set, but not all of their past five games were created equal. Along their journey this past holiday season, they had towering triumphs and crushing lows, and they’ve only become a more cohesive team in the process.

The five teams they confronted were, in order, Mehlville, St. Mary’s, Parkway Central, Marquette, and Fort Zumwalt South. Here’s how it went.

On Thursday, April 1, the volleyball team trekked to Mehville to face, you guessed it, Mehlville High on the court. The new Mehlville team looked intimidating in warmups, showcasing a set of hard-hitting outsides that would prove troublesome in some of the sets. SLUH won both sets, as Mehlville opting to play best of three instead of the five that has become standard for this year. 

As the first set began, SLUH set out to test the mettle of the Panthers, and Mehlville bit, proving their ability to carry a volley, but a series of aces by senior outside hitter Peter Quinn put his team ahead 4-1. The set continued to feature long, hard-fought volleys. The first timeout of the game was called by Mehlville after the service of junior setter George Henken set up the team with a 14-6 lead. The timeout seemed at first to work, with Mehlville pulling off a three-point run, but another set of aces by Quinn prompted another timeout, this time at 19-9. SLUH double Mehlville’s score in the first set, winning 25-12.

SLUH stayed dominant going into the second set, mostly racking up points through small runs. When the score reached 14-6 in favor of SLUH following a three-point run of service by junior libero Tanner Dougherty, Mehlville attempted to ease some pressure by calling its third timeout of the game, during which one of its outside hitters jokingly shouted, “Focus! We’re playing SLUH, here!” 

After Mehlville’s fourth timeout, SLUH this time ahead by 11 points, head coach Jeff Cheak felt it was appropriate to give playing time to the non-starters. Mehlville saw an opportunity. It began to attack hard, setting the ball to the outside hitters at every opportunity they had in hopes of slipping past the SLUH defences. And for a time, they succeeded. They got as close as 24-18 before they ended the game with a ball hit out of bounds.

Throughout the game, one of SLUH’s biggest assets was Mehlville’s apparent inability to hit the ball in the court, with SLUH earning a grand total of 23 points from net errors and overestimates of the court size. 

The game again St. Mary’s on Saturday, April 3, proved to be a bit smoother for SLUH, with the closest set finishing with SLUH 11 points ahead. The teams played best of five, and the blue-and-white-jerseyed home team looked comfortable throughout the match.

The first set started slow for SLUH as they allowed St. Mary’s to tack a 3-0 lead to the scoreboard following two attacking errors and miscommunication between the players. But they soon hit their rhythm, beating back their opponents until they led 9-7, at which point St. Mary’s called a timeout. With a small boost of energy, St. Mary’s came back swinging, keeping the score tight until SLUH began to inch ahead. St. Mary was unable to rally back against SLUH’s offense, and the game ended at 25-12. 

As the second set began, it was clear that SLUH would dominate. Effectively warmed up, SLUH went up 9-2 after a four-point run by junior outside hitter Phillip Bone, three of which were aces. The continued domination by the Jr. Bills prompted a timeout from St. Mary’s with SLUH up 15-3 after a five-point run by junior libero Craig Ortwerth. The Dragons had a small stint of points, but SLUH’s overpowering offense won the set by 15 points, the final score 25-10.

What would be the final set of the game saw playing time for the bench players, with Bone the only player staying in from the starting lineup. They quickly pulled away from a tight beginning, climbing to 11-6 following a block by junior setter Ben Harmon and a killer set to senior middle hitter Michael Krausz. There was a notable amount of middle sets during the game, the central position yielding few mistakes throughout. Krausz won the game for the team, burying St. Mary’s with a final score of 25-14.

The Parkway Central game on Tuesday, April 6 was equally dominant. SLUH won the match with over double the opposing team’s points in each set, again playing three sets.

Henken served three aces to start the game, followed by an impressive 10-0 run of service from Ortwerth, and it was obvious that the game was already in the bag, Parkway Central’s hopes already visibly crushed. The set ended 25-10 SLUH.

In the second set, SLUH performed just as perfectly, making their utter dominance seem almost boring, clearly now a motif in their volleyball season this year. The Jr. Bills won 25-10..

Finally, as the coveted third set began, the SLUH bench players flocked to the court. The set began at a neck-and-neck pace, the score getting as close as 11-10 in SLUH’s favor. But a run by Harmon set them straight again, pushing them to an 17-11 lead and keeping them ahead until their 25-15 clinching of the set and of the game.

The match served as a reminder of the capabilities of the varsity volleyball team and the utter destruction they can deliver when they play well.

On Wednesday, April 7, SLUH took on Marquette in Chesterfield. The team went in confident, expecting to overpower the Mustangs with sheer skill and power. However, Marquette proved themselves worthy, earning recognition as the toughest opponent of the week and the season so far. The confidence of the team soon turned into an issue, with SLUH not being ready for a team that had many solid players. 

The Jr. Bills got off to a rough start in the first set. Rough passing plagued SLUH’s serve receive throughout the entire set, keeping Henken from running an effective offense. Despite this issue, the Jr. Bills managed to lead the Mustangs by a slim margin throughout the set. Quinn had four consecutive hitting errors that put Marquette within one point, 20-19. However, Quinn got out of his funk with a blistering kill to put the team up 21-19. Junior libero Craig Ortweth went a 4-0 run to finish the set with a 25-19 win. A difference of only six points is considered a scare for the varsity team, so they hoped to get off on a hotter start during the second set. 

However, the Jr. Bills’ passing was not any better to start this set off. With Marquette going up 4-1, SLUH was in for another tight set. The team was looking for someone to bring energy in that moment. That energy was found in Dougherty, who went on a 7-0 run to put SLUH ahead 13-9. After that energy shift, passing progressed to team expectations and the Jr. Bills pushed their way through to 25-15 win. 

The third set was the first time in the season that non-starters stayed on the bench for the final set, a compliment to the Mustangs of their play. Senior middle hitter Michael Krausz started the set off with a huge kill, a continuation of the steady play the Jr. Bills ended the second set with. The team thought this kill meant a shift in match for a hint at SLUH domination in this final set. This was not the case. SLUH passers had a rough start once again, putting the Jr. Bills down 9-5. However, junior outside hitter Phillip Bone found a rhythm behind the service line when given the opportunity. Bone successfully put pressure on Marquette, forcing the five errors from the Mustangs’ offense. Bone ended up going on a 11-0 run, forcing a timeout from the opponent’s coach. From then on, SLUH cruised to a 25-12 win. 

Although this match highlighted some weaknesses for the Jr. Bills, the team is still happy to walk away with a win on their backs. 

On Friday, April 9, Fort Zumwalt South drove all the way from St. Peters to take on the Jr. Bills in the Danis Field House. SLUH hoped to make a bold statement against this team, especially after their shaky starts against Marquette. And a bold statement they made.

In the first set, the Jr. Bills had only minor slip ups, putting constant pressure on their opponent. A smooth sailing rhythm could not be stopped, and SLUHwon the first set, 25-15. 

SLUH’s performance in the second set was even more impressive. The team was only up 9-5 at the beginning, but after many kills and aces, Zumwalt managed just two more points for the rest of the set. Zumwalt’s block was almost non-existent, allowing SLUH attackers an almost free point. And even when they managed to put up a block, the Jr. Bills managed to hit right over it for a kill.

After the performance in the second set, Cheak felt comfortable putting in the non-starters. Led by many kills from Ben Harmon, who ran the offense with skill and precision, SLUH kept a lead too large for Zumwalt to overcome. 

A libero tallying a kill, a very rare occurrence, happened late in this set. The ball happened to come to Craig Ortwerth, who took a swing. His swing ricocheted off of Zumwalt’s block, resulting in a kill for Ortwerth. SLUH pushed its way through the remaining points, winning 25-16. 

The strength of the Jr. Bills’ schedule starts to pick up starting tonight against De Smet out in West County, followed by Vianney and CBC next week. All three of these opponents are top contenders for state, so these matches should well prepare the Jr. Bills for their hopeful state run. The Parkway Central Tournament also looms over the head of the team. This tournament is a great opportunity to play some tough teams who will stand in the way of SLUH and a state title.