Instead of shooting for a net, Fenwick two-sport athlete David Suwada is currently trying to avoid one, which isn’t difficult to do for the 6-foot-8-inch senior. Suwada started on the Fenwick basketball team and now plays middle hitter on the volleyball team. The two-time Chicago Catholic League all-conference volleyball player heads up a group of four other returning seniors for the Friars this season.
Krzyzstof Jablonski (5-foot-10), Phil Gough (6-0), Nick Mizera (6-3), John Brosnan (5-8) are all back and trying to improve on a 15-16 overall season from last year. Jablonski has resumed setter duties, while Gough, also a returning all-conference player and Mizera are outside hitters. Brosnan enters his final high school season as libero.
Sophomores Jeremy Gruszka (6-3) and Joe Kelly (5-8) are expected to make a significant impact as the Friars try to make some headway in the Catholic League, something that has been difficult to do with the caliber of competition. The Friars, who managed just three wins in nine matches against league opponents last season, will need all the help they can get against such teams as Brother Rice, Providence and Loyola.
“We have an experienced team with a lot of seniors, but many are playing in new positions this year,” said Fenwick head coach Katie Whitman (38-46), now in her fourth year at the helm. “It will be a transition, but they have the talent to do very well once they get accustomed to the new lineup. I also have a couple of sophomores who are new to the game but who I think will develop into pretty strong players.”
Despite what their league record may indicate, the Friars did give some top opponents a run for their money, which Whitman is hoping can provide some momentum for the team this time around.
“We are in a tough conference – the CCL has several teams who are some of the top in the state almost every year, but in the last few years our losses to conference and sectional teams have been in very close 3-game matches. I think we can pull some of these close matches out this year,” she said.
Whitman added that her team is not going to look past reaching a couple of attainable goals, like finishing in the top half of the CCL and winning a regional.
The Friars, who defeated St. Laurence 25-12, 25-27 behind eight kills by Suwada and Gough last week, host Brother Rice tonight (Wednesday, March 31) at 6 p.m. After a week off of competition for spring break, they welcome Notre Dame on Tuesday, April 13.