Senior Noah Beals and his Riverside Brookfield High School boys volleyball teammates worked all season to earn believers. Winning the Morton Regional as a No. 15 sectional seed for the Bulldogs’ first regional title since 2019 – and beating No. 2 sectional seed Shepard in the process – finally might have done so.
“I feel like we go under the radar a lot compared to other teams but I think this proved we’re not an under-the-radar team. We can compete,” Beals said. “This season really created a spark for our future. Most of our squad is really young. I think winning regionals really sparked us.”
The season ended Saturday with a 25-12, 25-18 loss to No. 3 Brother Rice in the Argo Sectional semifinals but the Bulldogs (20-18) played well to get there.
They surprised Shepard 25-23, 25-22 in the regional semifinals, May 26, and then beat Morton 25-23, 25-23 for the regional title Thursday.
The Bulldogs shared the Upstate Eight Conference East Division title with Glenbard East – their fourth straight conference title. Austin was named the division’s Player of the Year. Beals, junior setter Gianfranco Crancich and sophomore middle Aiden Darrah also were all-conference.
“We saw how much we could do this year. Next year we’ve just got to build on it and hopefully take it to the next level,” Novak said.
Austin (15 kills, 7 digs, 10 service receptions, 2 blocks), setter Crancich (18 assists, 4 digs) juniors Brandon Ruiz (10 assists) and Mateo Garcia (10 service receptions), sophomore Kyle Kummer (10 kills) and seniors Beals (4 kills) and libero Gavin Sharenow (7 digs, 5 assists, 17 service receptions) led the victory over Shepard.
The Astros (33-4) had won 27 straight matches, including a three-setter over Brother Rice (28-11). RBHS hit .321 as a team against with 33 kills and just eight attack errors.
“That’s a good team and they’ve had a great season,” RBHS coach Dan Bonarigo said. “When it came down to it, our outsides were good.”
“For me personally, maybe a top five (victory),” said Shipley, who had a key kill and block down the stretch. “We kind of came together and fought for that win.”
The Bulldogs’ victory over Morton (22-15) in their third meeting was a full-circle moment. The Bulldogs won the second encounter 25-18, 25-14 to conclude the Lincoln-Way East Invitational May 2 after losing the March 25 season opener at Morton 21-25, 25-23, 25-20 after leading late in the second set.
Austin and Kummerer each had seven kills, Crancich had 15 assists and Sharenow had 13 digs.
Against Brother Rice (28-11), RBHS quickly fell behind 11-4. The Bulldogs took a 9-5 lead in the second set but then a sideout and nine-point service steak led to a 15-9 deficit. The Bulldogs never again got closer than four points.
“We’ve had a lot of ups and downs,” Bonarigo said. “I would have liked to compete a little bit better (Saturday) but even at our best it would have been a tough game to win.”
Lacrosse
Xavier Mrozik-DeJesus and his fellow Riverside Brookfield boys lacrosse seniors won’t soon forget their final home game May 19. The Bulldogs’ Oak Forest Sectional opener against Whitney Young went into sudden-victory overtime. RBHS controlled the faceoff, called a timeout and seconds later Mrzoik-DeJesus scored for an 8-7 triumph – the second playoff victory in program history.
“That’s got to go in the No. 1 (slot),” said Mrozik-DeJesus, who will play Division I lacrosse at Mercyhurst (Erie, Pa.) “Just based off the environment, how crazy the guys were after, the playoff-game atmosphere, the stakes of it, the goal really did have a lot of meaning. Maybe it wasn’t the coolest goal or most flashy but the meaning and purpose of it was truly unforgettable.”
In 2025, RBHS won its first playoff game over Brother Rice 19-0. This season, the No. 8-seeded Bulldogs (8-8) achieved at least a .500 overall record under first-year head coach Justin Headley, losing their next game May 23 to No. 1 St. Ignatius 27-1 in the sectional quarterfinals. Mrozik-DeJesus finished this season with 62 goals and 18 assists and earned second-team all-state honors.
Whitney Young (8-10) was the Bulldogs’ second one-goal victory this season. Junior Gavin Keohane controlled the overtime face-off and senior Eddie Schook moved the ball upfield before the timeout. Mrozik-DeJesus restarted along the left sideline 16 yards from the goal. He ran behind freshman Tre Wyskiel’s screen to create an open shot from the 11.
“The play was for me to sweep over the top. I had a good look at the net. Gripped it and ripped it. It was an unbelievable experience,” Mrozik-DeJesus said. “A lot of guys that started this year were seniors but one thing we want to carry on is to show the younger guys we can win. We can compete. If we get the right people, decisions, solid coaching culture, we can shake the state.”
No. 2 Lyons Township (13-4) suffered a disappointing 8-7 sectional quarterfinal loss to No. 7 Oak Forest May 22 after reaching last year’s super-sectional. The Lions were riding a four-game winning streak after three straight losses, two by one goal.
The RBHS girls (2-13) won two of their final four games. The No. 8 seed in the Marist Sectional lost 21-0 to No. 1 St. Ignatius in the May 23 quarterfinals after winning their sectional opener over No. 9 Kenwood 24-6 May 18. RBHS also defeated Streamwood 6-5 May 12.
In the Maine South Sectional, the No. 6 LTHS girls (6-13) lost to No. 3 Nazareth 14-5 in the May 21 quarterfinals after opening with a 17-2 victory over No. 11 Elk Grove May 19.