HP_041819

hplandmark.com sports
the highland park landmark | April 18, 2019 | 31
Boys Volleyball
Giants no match for rival Warriors
Gary Larsen/
22nd Century Media
1st-and-3
Stars of the
Week
1. Jeremy Learner
(Above).
The senior
tennis player is
undefeated in
singles play this
season, winning
his last match on
Friday, April 12 in
straight sets.
2. Jeremy Frankel.
The pitcher tallied
eight strikeouts in
the Giants’ 5-4 win
over Maine South
on Thursday, April
11.
3. Ben Kirsch.
The pole vaulter
placed second in
a tri-meet on April
9 before winning
the event at the
Warren Invitaional
on Saturday, April
13.
Nick Frazier, Sports Editor
As evident by their rivalry
game at Deerfield
on Thursday, April 11, the
Giants still have their work
cut out for them.
Highland Park had
spurts of strong play
against the Warriors, but
it wasn’t nearly enough as
they lost the Central Suburban
League match in
two sets.
Head coach Kyle Muldoon
noted the Giants
(2-9) struggled to keep
Steve Feldman keeps the ball alive in the Giants 2-0 loss at Deerfield
on Thursday, April 11. Photos by Nick Frazier/22nd Century Media
Deerfield’s spikes alive,
something that’s the main
focus in practice.
“Our ball control is our
biggest issue right now,
we can’t do much outside
of that if our ball control
is not working,” Muldoon
said.
Highland Park fell behind
early in the opening
set, as Deerfield built a
quick 7-2 lead. The Giants
would later string together
an 8-1 run to tie the set at
14 apiece.
The Warriors eventually
pulled away, scoring
the last three points of the
set to win 25-21 and out
the pressure on Highland
Park. Yet Muldoon was
pleased with his team’s
fight after facing a deficit
right away.
“We showed some fight
in that first set, we were
down seven points pretty
quick and then we came
back and fought back,”
Muldoon said. “That was
good to see because that’s
what I’m asking them to
do right now is continue
that fight and do that from
start to finish, not necessarily
just in spurts, but
from the start of the match
to the end of the match.”
The second set began
more evenly, but Deerfield’s
outside hitter eventually
began to make life
miserable for the Giants.
The Warriors went on to
win the set 25-16.
Outside hitter Josh
Rohn continued his strong
2019 with seven kills in
the loss. Libero Jeff Siegel
had seven digs, and
Steven Feldman and Noah
Gordon each totaled seven
assists.
About half of the athletes
on the Highland
Park roster are new to the
sport, so the Giants are
still working to find out
which lineups are best for
them.
“We’re still trying to
figure out what our lineup
is and who are the players
that are going to be the
ones that will contribute
for the rest of the season,”
Muldoon said.
Matt Holleman serves the ball in the Giants’ 2-0 loss at Deerfield on
Thursday, April 11.
Listen Up
“You have to be consistent if you want to
compete in a conference as good as this one.”
Jason Newburger — Giants baseball head coach on team’s
11-2 loss to New Trier on April 9.
tune in
Softball: Varsity Game
• Highland Park hosts Glenbrook North at
4:45 p.m. Thursday, April 18.
Index
28 - This Week In
27 - Athlete of the Week
Fastbreak is compiled by Sports Editor Nick Frazier. Send any
questions or comments to n.frazier@22ndcenturymedia.com.