West Newsmagazine 7-19-17

34 I SPORTS I
July 19, 2017
WEST NEWSMAGAZINE
@WESTNEWSMAG
WESTNEWSMAGAZINE.COM
Parkway Central’s Zack Hresko ends two-sport career on high note
By WARREN MAYES
Parkway Central’s Zack Hresko ended
his high school career on a high note.
Hresko played on the Class 3 state
championship volleyball Colts’ team that
finished 32-4. Then he took part in the Missouri
Athletic Club’s North-South Senior
All-Star game at Soccer Park. Next up for
Hresko will be college volleyball at the
New Jersey Institute of Technology.
If anyone asks about his high school playing
days, he’ll have plenty to talk about.
A 6-foot-2 setter and right-side hitter, he
had a game for the ages in Parkway Central’s
17-25, 25-23, 25-22 victory over St.
Mary’s at Webster Groves High. In the
match, Hresko had 14 kills, a .370 hitting
percentage, 15 assists, 15 digs, one solo
block and two assist blocks.
For the state tournament in matches
totaling seven sets against Summit, Duchesne
and St. Mary’s, Hresko produced 28
kills, a .345 hitting percentage, 35 assists,
one ace, 32 digs, four solo blocks and three
assist blocks.
Colts coach Tom Schaefer said he has
never seen someone have a better finish in
a tight match like that before.
“He definitely stepped up for us in games
pening
er with
2 and 3, but especially when we
were trailing 22-21 in the final set of
the match,” Schaefer said. “He got
two kills to get us to match point and
then a solo block to win the match
and account for three of the final
four points we scored.”
Hresko is proud to finish his volleyball
career as a champion.
“It feels great. It’s really cool
because your name and your teammates
will always be recognized
as a state champion for that year,”
Hresko said.
For the season in 68 sets played,
Hresko finished with 177 kills, a .309
hitting percentage, 297 assists, 31 aces,
167 digs, 20 solo blocks and 21 assist blocks.
“I am very happy with those numbers
because my position allows me the
freedom to record just about every stat,”
Hresko said. But Hresko is more than just
the statistics he produced.
The four-year starter got into volleyball
when he was 9 years old. He began his
freshman year in the starting libero role on
junior varsity, but was called up to varsity
a few matches into the season because the
Colts were missing some players at a preseason
tournament; the other libero never
State champions: Zack Hresko [center] and the
Parkway Central Colts
got his spot back.
“Zach is a great all-around player,”
Schaefer said. “He excels at setting, hitting,
blocking and defense. We even pulled him
in to serve on several occasions. We turned
Zach into a setter his sophomore year. He
immediately took to learning the new position
and doing it as well as possible.
“He is extremely coachable. He doesn’t
just want to do the flashy things, he wants
to do the grunt work, too. He wants to do
all the little things that all add up to make
a big difference.”
Soccer also has long been a passion
for Hresko. He is a defender and played
on Colts’ varsity team all four years and
started his last three years.
“I like how it’s one of the only sports that
uses exclusively feet and how open the
game is to creativity,” Hresko said. “It’s a
big field and it teaches you how to work
as a team because there is a lot of space
to cover. Also, whenever I play soccer, my
mind is cleared and I’m only worried about
the game in front of me.”
Hresko was first team all-state in Class 3,
first team all-region and the state regional
defender of the year as well as first team
all-conference player as a senior.
“Zach is a very talented athlete that
thrives on competition,” Parkway Central
soccer coach Brian Adam said. “He not
only excels at the game, but he also sees the
personal match-ups to outplay the opponent.
Zach had a lot of leadership qualities
on and off the field. It helped that he was
skilled, experienced and driven. His teammates
would respect him for those alone,
but he had good personal skills that helped
to make each teammate feel important to
the team.”
He was rewarded by being named to the
North team in the annual senior all-star
game.
17290 N Outer 40 Rd • Chesterfield, MO 63005 • (636) 449-5785 • www.mwrbank.com
Celebrating our Chesterfield Grand Opening with 2 Great Offers:
Open a new Checking Account with
$1,000 balance for this CD rate:
2.00%APY*
36 Months
Open a new Money Market Account
for this unbelievable rate:
Money Market
.90% APY**
* CD: Annual Percentage Yield (APY) is accurate as of June 12, 2017 and is subject to change. Interest compounded quarterly. $1,000 min
to $99,000 max to open account and obtain yield, penalties may apply for early withdrawals. Fees, such as penalties, may reduce earnings.
Minimum checking account opening deposit of $1,000 to be eligible for CD special. ** Money Market: $25,000 minimum to open account and
obtain yield. Money Market rate is only available for new accounts opened at our Chesterfield Banking Center.
T h e B a n k o f T r a d i T i o n a n d p r o g r e s s .