Things go swimmingly for Jacobsen
Quincy-bound outside hitter gives up pool, leads St. Rita to Catholic League Blue and regional titles
St. Rita’s Ryne Jacobsen cleans up pretty good.
The senior outside hitter comes from a family with a rich tradition in swimming, but he decided in fourth grade that volleyball would be his sport.
“Swimming became a little boring to me — volleyball was a lot more fun,” he said. “Plus, I didn’t have to reek of chlorine every day. I just didn’t love swimming.”
His father, Rob, owns the Chicago Swim School in Mokena and Arlington Heights. His mother, Kim, has coached swimming. His sister, Kira, swims and plays water polo at Mother McAuley. And don’t forget his uncle, Jimi. Jimi Kiner is a Tinley Park native whose swimming career took him to Florida, where he’s the head coach at the University of Tampa.
Ryne said he received a little bit of static from the family about giving up swimming for volleyball.
“At the beginning, they weren’t sure about it because swimming is what my family has done,” he said. “They questioned my choice. Nobody in my family has ever played volleyball before.
“I think it’s worked out in the long run. They are all proud of me.”
Jacobsen, a Quincy recruit, helped the Mustangs close out the regular season by winning their third straight Catholic League Blue title.
He then led the Mustangs to their sixth straight regional title Thursday night with a 25-8, 25-8 win over Hancock.
St. Rita was one of six area teams to win regional titles but only two — Marist and Lincoln-Way East — remain alive for Tuesday’s sectional championship matches after Saturday’s semifinal action.
The Mustangs lost 15-25, 25-21, 32-30 to Whitney Young at De La Salle.
St. Rita coach Brian Hagen said he has appreciated Jacobsen’s versatility over the years.
The 6-foot-2 Jacobsen played middle hitter as a freshman, moved to the right side as a junior and turned into an outside hitter this season.
“He really put a lot of time in the offseason to work on being an outside,” Hagan said of Jacobsen. “He’s a quick learner and a super-athletic kid. We needed him to play middle at the Lincoln-Way East Tournament because we were short four starters, and he did well. He didn’t forget how to play that position.
“He’s always been versatile. The easiest way to find a spot on the court is to be able to play a bunch of positions.”
Hurry-up mode: Even with a 4:15 p.m. start, Lincoln-Way West needed a quick exit in the Lockport Regional semifinals to get to graduation.
The Warriors beat Plainfield North
25-22, 25-23 in 53 minutes and quickly gathered their equipment for the trip back to New Lenox for the ceremony.
Plainfield North was threatening late in the second game, and forcing a decisive Game 3 would have made for an interesting scenario.
“The seniors were leaving after the second game no matter what, so they
wouldn’t have been there if there was a third game,” Lincoln-Way West coach Jodi Frigo said.
With the score 24-22, Frigo brought in senior Andrew Tomaszewski, who ended the match with an ace.
Managing quite well:
Make no mistake, LincolnWay East junior Tyler Walenga feels better about being able to play all season.
Last spring, he was brought up to the varsity
as a sophomore, but a knee injury prevented him from playing until the regional final. He prefers the 2022 scenario, but he said watching on the bench was not all that bad.
“It was fun,” he said. “It was more of just chillin’. I didn’t have to worry about playing. I did everything I could. I was like a team manager.”