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Even though Reavis has a handful of club players, Krystian Paluch isn’t one of them.
The sophomore libero is a tough, two-sport athlete who also plays soccer. And boys volleyball coach Mike Jebens is happy with what Paluch brings to the table for the Rams.
“He is the heart and soul of our team,” Jebens said. “He’s a really good soccer player and a heck of an athlete. He’s stepped up huge. He will run through a wall for us.”
One of those walls went down on April 1. The 5-foot-10 Paluch was the only sophomore named to the 12-player all-tournament team as the Rams (8-5) finished sixth at Argo.
Paluch was a setter at Liberty Junior High in Burbank, but he switched to libero.
“I’m obviously not the tallest, so libero probably suits me the best,” Paluch said. “I’m pretty good at hustling for the ball, so it works out. It just comes naturally.”
Even though Paluch does not play club, he stays in shape during the offseason playing sand volleyball with his older brother, Jakub, and some of his Rams teammates.
Last spring’s 12-19 record is spurring on this season’s young team to turn things around.
“We didn’t have a lot of experience last year and we hope we can take a huge leap this year,” Paluch said. “We’re winning games that last year we might have lost.”
Paluch already has an unforgettable highlight on his athletic resume. As a freshman, he scored the tying goal in a 2-2 draw with Argo at SeatGeek Stadium in Bridgeview.
“That was probably the best feeling of my life — it was crazy,” Paluch said. “It’s like a dream come true. I know it sounds cliché to say, but it was.
“Professionals played there and it was mesmerizing to play there.”
Foregone conclusion: Will Pluskota played volleyball in grade school but gave it up in high school to concentrated on golf at Lincoln-Way West.
But the Warriors were looking for a middle hitter with some size for this season, and the 6-6 senior fit the bill.
“Will doesn’t even play volleyball, and he’s a really good golfer for us,” Lincoln-Way West coach Jodi Frigo said. “He played volleyball in sixth grade and was a little guy.”
At 6-6, Pluskota no longer fits that description.
His older brother, Ben, was a standout for the Warriors in 2018 and is now starring in the back row for North Central College, which has been ranked in the top 10 in the nation in NCAA Division III.
With that type of pedigree, it was natural for Frigo to approach him.
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“He’s a senior and we graduated all of our middles,” she confirmed. “I said, ‘Do you think you maybe want to come back and try volleyball because you are now 6-6?’
“He said, ‘Would I make the team?’ I’m like, ‘Yes, we will train you.’ He’s working really hard, but he hasn’t played volleyball in five years. He is getting better and has more confidence.”
Break ‘em up: If they live up to lofty expectations, national powers Marist and Lincoln-Way East wouldn’t meet up until the state playoffs.
The Illinois High School Association’s postseason assignments came out, with the two teams being placed in separate sectionals.
In the past three full seasons, Marist and Lincoln-Way East battled it out in the sectional championship match for the right to go to state. Marist won in 2019, with Lincoln-Way East prevailing in 2021 and 2022.
According to the latest USA Today/American Volleyball Coaches Association poll, Marist is ranked third in the country. Lincoln-Way East is 12th.
Jeff Vorva is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.
