A bloody good win
Juergens shakes off cut as Lockport sweeps Sandburg
Lockport junior Grace Juergens was a showstopper Wednesday — although not exactly the way she wanted to be.
Play had to be halted in Game 1 when the 5-foot-11 outside hitter came off the court with blood trickling down her left wrist.
“I had a floor burn from practice,” Juergens said. “It just ripped open and it was bleeding. I didn’t want to get blood all over the court, so I got it taped up.
“After I went back in, we were all good.”
Anotherodditytohereveningwas Juergens didn’t record her first kill until well into the second game. She entered the match with a team-leading 150 kills.
“There was a lot of rallying back and forth and they had a good block up there,” Juergens said. “I had to figure out how to get around it.”
Juergens still did her fair share during Lockport’s 25-21, 25-9 SouthwestSuburbanBluevictoryoverhost Sandburg.
Aleksa Simkus added six kills and three blocks for the Porters (20-6, 2-0). Megan Consigny had five kills and 10 digs, Jenna Kolosta landed five kills, Ava Theoharis made 12 digs and Cameryn DeBlecourt dished out 13 assists.
Sidona Rao led Sandburg (14-14, 1-1) with eight kills. Gabby Gasior added five kills and three digs, while Keira Fitzgerald had 11 assists.
Juergens only contributed two killstoherteam-leadingtotal,butshe also had four digs. She also delivered a significant four-point serving run in Game 1 that helped the Porters rally from a 7-2 deficit.
After a freshman year on the sophomore team, Juergens made her varsity debut in the spring. She established herself quickly as a takecharge leader.
Lockport coach Nick Mraz gave her the reins.
“Grace is just one of those players every coach wants on their team,” Mraz said. “She does whatever she needs to for the team. This season, she’s grown to where if we’re out of system and in trouble, we can rely on her to make a play.
“She wants the ball in those big moments.Ifshemakesamistake,she takes ownership. When she makes a play, she looks to her teammates to give them credit. She’s a playmaker and humble.”
Consigny, meanwhile, continues to ace a rapid-fire course in being a varsity regular.
Whensecond-leadinghitterLindsay Oldendorf shut down her season Sept. 20 for long-needed shoulder surgery, Mraz reached down to the sophomore level.
Consigny, a 5-7 outside hitter, answered the call.
“I was really surprised when she had the surgery,” Consigny said. “Then I got a text that said, ‘Hey, we’d like you to come up and play the rest of the season.’
“I was shocked that it was me. Lindsay is such a great player, leader and a person. I was nervous to fill her
shoes.”
Consigny played her first varsity match without the benefit of a practice.
“I pulled her up right away and threw her right into the fire,” Mraz
said. “Since then, she has been rolling with it and doing well.”In 10 matches, Consigny already has 54 kills and 80 digs.
She didn’t look at all nervous against Sandburg.
“I was a lot more nervous about the people more than playing, just because they were older,” Consigny said. “But they were really great to me. They really made me feel like I was part of the team.”
It was a respect Simkus, a junior outside hitter, pointed out was well-deserved.
“Stepping on the court as a sophomore and filling Lindsay’s shoes was amazing,” Simkus said. “She moved up on such short notice, took
complete control of the court andplayedbasicallyflawlessly.
“I was very inspired. Even though she’s younger, I still
look up to her.”