Wheaton North wins three-set thriller over Prospect to take Fremd Invite title

PALATINE – Saturday afternoon’s final of the Fremd boys volleyball invite pitted MSL East champ Prospect against a tough, 19-game winner Wheaton North club from the DuKane Conference.

It also marked the final Vikings tourney appearance for venerable Knights head coach Mike Riedy who will be sailing off into the coaching sunset at season’s end.

In 30 seasons at the helm, Riedy’s teams have combined to capture seven regionals, six MSL East crowns, an MSL Conference title in 2007, and an Elite Eight berth in 1997.

Riedy, who captured his 600th coaching victory last weekend with a win over Libertyville, was looking to keep his squad’s momentum going as it entered the final having won five straight.

He took a moment to look back on a sport that has gone through numerous changes.

“One (change) is the athleticism and skill level of the high-school male athlete has improved tremendously,” said Riedy, who became the sixth coach in Illinois to reach that milestone.

“I also think experience levels have improved. Now three-quarters of my team plays club. We’re seeing athletes who are playing year-round versus three months out of the year. That’s probably the biggest change for me.”

After splitting their first two sets with identical scores of 25-20, Wheaton North used its athletic prowess to pull out the deciding third set 25-23 to take home the championship plaque.

It was Wheaton North’s second invitational tourney title this year making them the first Falcons squad to achieve such a feat having won at Joliet West during the final weekend of March.

“This is a nice tournament that allows us to come a little more north. It’s cool to see that competition statewide and it’s always nice to see that progression from pool play day one into bracket play (day two) and to watch your team raise their level of competition as the team on the side of the net proves to be better and better,” Wheaton North coach John Noe IV said.

“We’re very excited to prove ourselves and just showcase that improvement from March into May (and) to kind of embrace that.”

In game one, the Falcons (20-10) were finally able to separate themselves thanks to a game-winning 4-0 surge that 6-foot-5 senior outside Ben Boyce closed out with a decisive block for set point.

Prospect (24-7) evened things at 1-1 when it went on a closing 7-3 tear that senior setter Ryan Cook closed out with a game-clinching block of his own.

Game three would see the Falcons rally from a 21-20 deficit after a dig from Cook with consecutive kills from junior outside hitters Peter Dey and Aidan Syswerda (game-high 12 kills) that gave them the lead for good. That was followed by kills from junior opposite hitter Joe Claud and the sixth from Boyce for match point.

Outside hitters Brendan Ziengenhorn (9 kills, 1 assist, 1 block) and Bartosz Czerwiec (6 kills, 1 ace, 1 dig), a junior and senior, respectively, paced the Prospect effort.

Boyce, an Indiana University-bound computer science major, spoke of his team’s success in matching up with Prospect.

“I think we did a good job adjusting,“ Boyce said.

“I think (in) this group, we’re all motivated. We just prepare ourselves to be ready. That’s the way we play. We really earned every win (that) we’ve gotten this year.”

https://www.dailyherald.com/20250510/boys-volleyball/boys-volleyball-wheaton-north-wins-3-set-thriller-over-prospect-to-capture-title-at-fremd/