NT_041119

46 | April 11, 2019 | The Northbrook tower Sports
northbrooktower.com
Brodell leads the way for Spartans
Gary Larsen
Freelance Reporter
Every team needs a
player who can calm
things down, a player who
provides an edge and a
player who can get a big
kill when it’s needed.
Glenbrook North junior
Ethan Brodell is just one
player, but he can fill all
three of those roles.
“He’s not the most
flashy kid out there but
he does everything well,”
Glenbrook North coach
Chris Cooper said. “He’s
got some grit and some
real calmness to him. We
never seem to get bent out
of shape and that’s largely
because of the way he
plays out there.”
Brodell had six kills
and two blocks in the
host Spartans’ 25-21, 25-
13 win over Glenbrook
South on Thursday, April
4. With a raucous crowd
present for the local rivalry
game, Brodell did what
he could to keep his side
collected.
“The gym was packed
today but really it’s just
the six people on the court
and that’s all that matters,”
Brodell said. “So I
just try to keep everyone
calm.”
Thursday’s first set
went back-and-forth between
the Spartans and
Titans, before Glenbrook
North (5-2) gained separation
from Glenbrook
South (2-2).
The Spartans grabbed
momentum and the win,
and then rode that momentum
to a more convincing
second-set win.
Jack Joselit and Zach
Fox finished with four
kills apiece for the Spartans,
Louis Betang had 18
assists, and Paul Wyszynski
had eight digs.
Both teams were missing
players due to assorted
injuries, and Cooper
has been pleased with the
effort he’s getting from an
ever-changing lineup.
“Every night it seems
like there’s a different
guy stepping up,” Cooper
said. “(Fox) has been
doing a nice job on the
outside, and it’s (Betang’s)
first year setting
and he’s starting to pick
it up. David Gusis probably
wasn’t expecting to
play middle but he’s doing
a nice job, and Alex
Brafford is probably one
of our newest players in
terms of years of experience,
but he’s playing
well. So we’re just getting
a really good combination
of things right
now.”
One of the constants has
been Brodell, who also
plays with an edge that’s
quickly apparent on the
court.
“I like to try to carry a
little bit of mojo, a little
fire,” he said. “I play best
when I think I’m the best
player on the court. The
adrenaline is running
through you and you feel
like you can do anything.”
Glenbrook South took
the court without a few
injured players, including
four-year starting setter
Thomas Cavallaro,
who is expected to return
sometime next week. But
Titans coach Tim Monahan
wasn’t making any
excuses.
“Glenbrook North has a
really nice group and they
played well,” Monahan
said.
“The difference was,
in the first set we had 10
Glenbrook North boys volleyball player Ethan Brodell spikes the ball against Glenbrook South on Thursday, April
4, in Northbrook. Photos by Gary Larsen/22nd Century Media
unforced errors to their
three, and in the second
set we had eight unforced
errors to their two. That’s
the difference.”
Titans outside hitter
Jack Shampine, who recently
committed to play
at Penn State next year,
got down to specifics.
“It was mostly our
serves,” he said. “When
we make our serves we
can go on a run so that’s
one of the biggest things.
One of our biggest faults
today was also our passing
but when we clean
that up we’ll be okay.”
The Titans began the
season with wins over
Elk Grove and Maine
West before dropping
matches to Lincoln-Way
Central and Glenbrook
North. Cavallaro’s looming
return figures to boost
a Titans team that has
Libero Paul Wyszynski returns a serve.
solid pieces around the
court.
“(Shampine) is obviously
the real deal and
Kyle (Busiel), our sophomore
in the middle, is
doing a nice job for us,”
Monahan said. “Colin
Roy shifted over from
the middle to the outside
and he’s doing a nice job
there, and if teams focus
too much on (Shampine),
Joey Masloski is going to
surprise some people.”