Serious rivalries are made when teams of competitive and talented volleyball players go head to head on the court each Monday night during Spike League. This is the current ranking of the A Bracket teams, composed of players that are “in it to win it”.
Tied for First Place
Delicious Green Beans: Jim Chiou (junior), Kevin Tsuru (junior), Michael Burds (junior), Derek Janusz (junior), Max Elghanian (junior), Harry Marwil (junior), Catherine O’Brien (junior), Henry Lindstrom (junior), and Ava Milani (junior)
“Think about the American Army going up against the Korean Army, that height difference; we are the American Army,” Marwil gloated.
I’d Hit That: Emma Willcocks (junior), Katie Duquette (junior), Ceejay Xiong (junior), Nicole Beto (junior), Michael Tamkin (junior), Allyson Vaughn (junior), and Meghan Riordan (junior)
Willcocks’ team tries to focus on the fun side of the league while still crushing the competition with a 3-0 record. “Let’s be honest…we hit that,” Duquette said.
New Trier 18U: Evan Gruchot (senior), Nate Friefeld (senior), Peter Kirie (senior), Ally Blommer (junior), Anders Aschkenase (junior), and Liz Sollitt (junior)
Gruchot explained, “If you are looking for a good match, the inevitable facing of my team and the Delicious Green Beans should be one of the best Spike League matches at New Trier in the history of the Booster Club.”
Tied for Second Place
Yellow Magic: David Pollack (senior), Alexander Chen (senior), Grant Park (senior), Josh Park (senior), Chico Park (senior), and Patrick Huang (senior)
Yellow Magic takes Spike League very seriously. They are known to show up hours before to practice for their upcoming games. Pollack explained that their favorite color is yellow, it’s not just because their team in Asian.
Scared Hitless: Kayla Malehorn (senior), Katie Hochschild (senior), Emma Feeney (senior), Courtney Lewis (senior), Grace Carlson (senior), Lynley Evans (senior), Sarah Shafiq (senior), and Kate Conaghan (senior)
Tied for Third Place
You Tryna Bump?: Jessica Bleiweis (senior), Chris Lane (senior), Clay Cassato (senior), Taylor Newmark (senior), Quinn Fitzpatrick (senior), Andrew Murlick (senior), George Lamason (senior), Martin Oppegaard (senior), William Errath (senior), and Megan Wetzel (senior)
Lamason said, “Intramural sports are no laughing matter. Spike league is a lifestyle. We bump, set, and spike better than any team in the league, and every single one of my teammates knows that walking into the gym on Monday night.”
Gold Diggers: Dante Chakrovorti (senior), Clare Sheridan (senior), Corey Schwartz (senior), Jake Reynolds (senior), Cam Lloyd-Jones (senior), Ian Michelson (senior), and Daniel Bergelson (senior).
Chakrovorti explained his team’s strategy, “We’re looking to lull our opponents into a daze (Reynolds and Lloyd-Jones are best dressed with various crop tops week in and week out) and then slowly, but surely, take point after point.”
Nasty Green Beans: Connor Cook (junior), Alex Cook (junior), Catherine Hinkamp (junior), Talia Harrington (junior), Issy Wilson (junior), Zach Kaplan (junior), Tristan Jacobs (junior), Ray Lemaine (junior), and Laine Stern (junior)
These three time Division A champions play by the “make the play you stay” substitution rule, so basically if a player messes up, they kick them off the court and someone else comes in. Cook explained that their biggest competitor is currently the Delicious Green Beans team.
Swingers: Collin Crowder (senior), Owen Phillips (senior), Robby Snyder (senior), Dennis Anastos (senior), Ben Portnoy (senior), Kate Conaghan (senior), Will Dellva (senior), and Jacqui Gossard (senior)
Compared to the New Trier Varsity Volleyball Team, Crowder says that the Swingers fall a little short, but that doesn’t stop them from going out and raking up as many points as they can. “Even if that means arguing a call every five minutes,” Crowder claimed.
Club Ice: Ye Sol An (sophomore), Joe Lim (sophomore), Steve Kim (sophomore), Ruben Greenstein (sophomore), Sam Lim (junior), and William Majarucon (sophomore)
Although An says that this is one of the “averagely shortest” teams in the league, these players don’t let height get to them.
Tied for Fourth Place
Can You Dig It?: Griffin Schilder (sophomore), Yanni Melidones (sophomore), Ray Volpe (sophomore), Alex Khan (sophomore), Allen Lee (sophomore), Tim Verlinsky (sophomore), Peter Magner (sophomore), and Luca Giorgi (sophomore)
Uh Huh Bunge: Nathan Reiff (senior), Chloe O’Donoghue (senior), Will Finnegan (senior), Luke Duros (senior), Ben Weinstein (senior), Emmie Kline (senior), Charlie Bunge (senior), Erin Guder (senior), Michaela Maday (senior), Nick Merrill (senior), Billy Maloney (senior), and Jack McGuinness (senior)
This team has been playing together since freshman year and have become better players throughout the years.