Haven Enselman came into her freshman year at Marist looking to contribute wherever she could.
Mission accomplished.
Making the varsity and earning the starting setter’s spot, Enselman has been a star player all season for the RedHawks.
Helping Marist to a 25-13, 25-17 victory on Oct. 30 over host Sandburg, Enselman finished with 20 assists, two kills and two blocks in a Class 4A regional championship.
“It’s literally a dream,” Enselman said. “It definitely wasn’t guaranteed. I put in a lot of work over the summer, worked hard and had a good mindset going into anything. Even though I’m a freshman, I can still play with these girls.”
Also starring for the RedHawks were seniors Cassidy Cage (five kills, three blocks) and Tessa Dowling (four kills, two blocks) and junior Maggie Kurpeikis (five kills).
Marist (31-5) advanced to play Lincoln-Way East (29-8) on Nov. 4 in a Rich Sectional semifinal.
Enselman has a high-powered Marist offense running in high gear.
With options all across the net and back row, she’s keeping things simple and spreading the wealth to all her hitters.
“It’s just what’s going on on the other side of the net,” Enselman said. “The block and who’s up there, that’s how I feed the hitters. Everyone would have butterflies in this spot honestly. I was definitely very thankful for this opportunity.”
Marist coach Jordan Vidovic said Enselman hasn’t played like a cautious freshman.
Instead, Enselman has looked to play an aggressive style and hopefully elevate the RedHawks’ offense.
“You could see her capability at this level when we first started up,” Vidovic said. “Haven was doing things with a purpose from the start. It was a no-brainer for her to be part of this team. She has established herself as an effective, impactful presence on the court, not just a body.”
Cage, a Mississippi State recruit, said Enselman has brought a calming presence to the team at setter.
“Haven does really well under pressure,” Cage said. “Especially in the second set when we gave up some of our lead, she kept us in rhythm and helps us keep our composure. She’s done it all really fast and has been great for us.”
And whether she’s passing to Cage on a slide to the right or Kurpeikis out of the back row, Enselman knows someone is going to put the ball down for her.
“Even if I’m off or we’re out of system, I always have options,” Enselman said. “That always makes everything really fun.”
Sophomores Aubrey Deverick (five kills), Ellery Dyra (four kills) and Peyton Pawlicki (five assists), junior Marilena Karbo (eight assists) and senior Delaney May (six digs, two kills) contributed for Sandburg (13-23).
Eagles coach David Vales said his young Eagles squad had some ups and downs this season.
But all the while, the roster stuck together and kept fighting.
“We let matches slip away in the end,” Vales said. “What we appreciate from this group, as you saw in the second set, was that resiliency, that never-give-up attitude. We had one of the best chemistry groups we’ve had in a long time. The group loved each other. That’s what you hope for in a program.”
Regional royalty
St. Laurence and Mother McAuley each won Class 4A girls volleyball regionals and were set to face each other at the Rich Sectional on Nov. 4.
Aubrey Martinez had 11 kills in St. Laurence’s 25-22, 25-18 win over Homewood-Flossmoor. Cayla Prohaska had eight kills and five digs in McAuley’s 25-11, 25-10 win over Shepard.
Lyons beat York 25-23, 25-20 to win the York Regional.
In Class 3A, Nazareth won its own regional, beating Kennedy 25-4, 25-10, and in Class 2A, Chicago Christian won its eighth straight regional, beating Sandwich 25-12, 25-13.
Running to state
Nazareth won the third girls cross country sectional in program history, scoring 64 points at the Class 2A Fenton Sectional. Sophomore Kathleen Hardy finished sixth with a time of 18 minutes, 58.74 seconds. Freshman Elena Vlahos was 10th with a 19:42.06.
In the boys race, Nazareth senior Daniel Lewis was the top area finisher with an eighth-place finish in 16:05.18.
At the Class 3A Hinsdale Central Sectional, Sandburg’s boys finished second and Morton fourth. Reavis junior Santiago Chavez was the top area finisher with a second-place finish in 14:37.52. Sandburg’s girls finished third and Lyons senior Mya Coglianese was the top area finisher with an 18:12.04 to place ninth.
In Class 1A, Chicago Christian’s girls took fourth at the Lisle Sectional. Khira Moes took sixth with a 19:36.65 in the 5,000-meter run.
The state meets will be held Nov. 8 in Peoria.
Jeff Vorva contributed to this story.