Marist junior Mike Forbes and senior Nick Larson know the challenge that awaits them and their teammates this fall.
The RedHawks graduated virtually their entire rotation from last season’s state-championship squad, leaving one role after another to be claimed this spring.
But it’s more than that.
It isn’t just the stats and on-court play. It’s who will lead the way.
Consider Forbes and Larson ready to go.
“I’m excited to piece it together and see what we can do,” Forbes said. “It’s a new group of guys that have never really been in the gym together. I want to see how that plays out. Me and Nick decided to step up and fill those (leadership) roles.”
Marist finished 40-2 overall last season on the way to its second straight state championship and fifth overall.
The 2025 squad featured a deep senior-dominated rotation led by Christian Teresi (Ohio State) and Nathen Toth (MIT).
So as the RedHawks begin their title defense, it’s starting from the ground up for coach Jordan Vidovic.
“There’s a huge level of excitement for a fresh opportunity and unique challenges,” Vidovic said. “The volleyball side is the volleyball side. We know what we’re doing there. It’s the excitement of tougher challenges that face us and doubts that surround us. That’s a motivating factor too for a lot of guys who haven’t been able to showcase what they do.”
Larson finished with 19 kills and 15 blocks last season. Forbes totaled 10 kills and five blocks.
The middle blocker duo played supporting roles to starters Griffin McElroy (260 kills, 83 blocks) and Tommy Doherty (107 kills, 65 blocks).
“They honestly showed us how to work hard,” Larson said. “It’s easy to take a back seat with the talent we had. Them showing us to work hard, that’s something we want to transfer over to this year. It’s challenging each other in practice every single day and pushing each other.”
Going from smaller supporting roles to major, go-to roles, Forbes said he and Larson had some good conversations with each other and with Vidovic about embracing those leadership spots.
“With the rotation graduating, it’s big roles to fill,” Forbes said. “Me and Nick decided to step up and fill those roles. We had a couple long conversations establishing things about the season and getting prepared.”
Vidovic said a major key is finding that right combination in his rotation, developing a strong attack across the net but also a sturdy back row defense that can also jump-start the offense.
“I see the potential to be a firepower team for sure,” Vidovic said. “The question marks are trying to figure out early how we’re going to connect the front and back. It’s matching our offense and defense and utilizing both to be as offensive as we usually want to be. It’s gaining some experience in skill positions knowing we have weapons up front to be really physical.”
Marist opens the season March 26 against O’Fallon and then hosts the RedHawk Invitational March 27-28.
Larson said the team can’t wait to put its own personal stamp on the season.
“It’s seeing the success we had last year and wanting to implement it this year,” Larson said. “We saw how good we were, how we felt at the end of the season, and we want to replicate that this year. We know we have a new team, but it’s putting guys in the right shoes to be able to get the same results.”