The undefeated New Trier Trevians paid the Niles West Wolves a visit Thursday night, but the results were the opposite of what Wolves fans hoped to see. Going into the game, the stakes were high. With a chance to end New Trier’s undefeated season and set a school record for wins, Niles West had a lot to play for. The stands were packed and the student section was loud for what soon turned into a sobering contest.
The game started with a Trevian serve that the Wolves hit out. West lost the next four points, and head coach Stacy Metoyer was forced to call an early timeout with the score 5-0 New Trier. Coming out of the timeout Niles West seemed to finally have their feet under them, but were still unable to catch the Trevians.
At this point, junior Olivia Rusek scored the Wolves first point of the game, quickly followed by New Trier hitting the ball out of play. Senior Melanie Vujovich then added a kill of her own and blocked a New Trier spike, something the Wolves struggled with on the night. Rusek added two more kills, and with the help of a few miscues by the Trevians, West pulled within two.
With the score standing 11-9 New Trier, and the momentum finally on the Wolves site, things turned south quickly. The Trevians scored nine straight points before senior Krista Grunst responed with a kill. New Trier’s 9-0 run was helped as much by Niles West’s mistakes as it was by the Trevians offense. New Trier went on to win the first set 25-15.
The second set followed in the footsteps of the first. Senior Felicia Phan’s serve to start the second set was returned by the Trevians, but the Wolves responded quickly this time, jumping out to a 3-2 lead. West held the edge for a limited amount of time. New Trier tied the game at four apiece before kicking it into high gear. The Trevians then went on a 7-2 run that forced a Niles West timeout.
Talking things over seemed to help New Trier more than the Wolves, as they immediately went on a 14-3 run to close the set and the game, 25-9.
Coach Metoyer feels that the team needs to learn from this loss.
“When you go up against a state ranked team, you’ve gotta be at your best. You’ve gotta play with confidence and execute better,” she said.
