By Deren Kudeki
Gargoyle staff reporter
Posted Sunday, Nov. 19, 2006, The OG, sports

ALTHOUGH THEY WEREN'T able to add a playoff win to their list of accomplishments, the 2006 Illineks succeeded in setting new standards for the Uni girls volleyball program.

For the first time in the 11-year history of the varsity team, the girls had a winning season, and they ended with 15 wins, one more than last year's school record. They also placed second in the East Central Illinois Conference, their best conference finish ever. Uni's 8-4 ECIC record edged out DeLand-Weldon's 7-5 mark (though both were well behind Decatur Lutheran's 12-0 record).

Team MVP Mandy Grill in action. (photo by
Michael Smeltzer) (click to enlarge)

“I knew [the season] would be incredible,” said senior Mandy Grill, “and for the most part we lived up to our expectations. Like any other season, we had our moments where things just didn't quite come together, but there were also moments (like in the St. Thomas More or Fisher games) where we exceeded our own expectations.”

Against a strong St. Thomas More team on Sept. 11, Uni kept it close, winning the first game 25-16 before losing to the visitors 17-25, 9-25. Against former Sangamon Valley Conference opponent Fisher, a team Uni routinely lost to when the Illineks played in the SVC, the girls dispatched the visiting Bunnies in two games on Sept. 14, 25-23, 25-22.

The Illineks did more than break team records — they also broke many individual records.

Junior Ruthie Welch set school records for most assists in a season (323, breaking her previous record of 241), and most assists in a career (600 — she entered the season already owning the record, with 277).

Welch also would have set a new season record for most aces in a season (74), but she was exceeded by her teammate Grill, who set the record with 80.

Indeed, Grill enjoyed a remarkable senior campaign. She tied the school record for career aces (153, which she shares with 2006 alum Annie Fehrenbacher). She also set records for most digs in a season (236, breaking her previous record of 187), and most digs in a career (471, breaking Fehrenbacher's mark of 369).

Junior Jamie Weiser and sophomores Jessi Sullivan and Rachel Skoza also made their way into top-five spots in the record books for season kills (Sullivan, 133, third), digs (Weiser, 161, third), blocks (Skoza, 37, fourth), and aces (Sullivan, 59, fifth).

On the team's list of career records, Welch ended the season third in digs (271) and aces (124), Sullivan fourth in kills (193), and Weiser fourth in digs (210). Sophomore Annie Machesky finished the year fifth in career digs (190).

Grill and Welch were both named to The News-Gazette's all-area special mention squad, while Sullivan and senior Beckaa Wallig earned honorable mention distinction.

“This season was a test for us after the success we had last year,” said head coach Amanda Palla, who led the team to a 14-14 mark in 2005 in her first season as Uni head coach. Palla, a 1997 Uni graduate, was a member of the 1996 team, which had held the previous school record for most wins in a season, 10.

“There were a lot of expectations to live up to,” she said. “We had a tough schedule, starting the season with 16 matches in 16 days. We also played some teams that were tougher competition, such as St. Thomas More and Westville. We held our own in those matches and showed how well we were capable of playing.”

The season got off to a rough start, with the team losing its first match and then all but one match at the DeLand-Weldon Eagle Classic. After that tournament, the team won two matches before losing all but one of its matches at the Westville Invitational.

After that, the Illineks beat Normal Calvary and Fisher before a three-match losing streak, but they were able to make it up by going 9-1-1 in their final 11 regular-season matches. The girls entered the postseason seeded 16th in the 24-team Stanford Olympia sectional but lost their first-round game to Prairie Central 15-25, 16-25 on Oct. 23.

“It was really upsetting when we lost our first regional game,” said Skoza.

But don't expect the Illineks to remain down for long.

“The past couple of seasons have broken records and been phenomenal,” said Weiser, “so that has given us a bit of an incentive to push on our game play and really make next year a season to remember.”

Overall, the team's senior leaders seemed satisfied with their final year in a Uni uniform.

“We worked hard, we generally had fun,” said Wallig. “Were there some times when we didn't step it up when we needed to? Yes, but we pulled it through.”

Said Grill: “It was a great season, and I anticipate that the girls next year will continue to break and set school records.”

VARSITY RECORD: 15-14-1 overall, 8-4 ECIC
(Home matches in bold)
Aug. 31: Oakwood, L 11-25, 23-25
Sept. 2: Atwood-Hammond (at DeLand-Weldon Eagle Classic), L 23-25, 25-18, 9-15
Sept. 2: LeRoy (at DeLand-Weldon Eagle Classic), W 25-13, 22-25, 15-10
Sept. 2: South Fork (at DeLand-Weldon Eagle Classic), L 25-8, 16-25, 8-15
Sept. 2: Rockford Keith (at DeLand-Weldon Eagle Classic), L 9-25, 17-25
Sept. 2: Lovington (at DeLand-Weldon Eagle Classic), L 20-25, 9-25
Sept. 5: Buckley Christ Lutheran,* W 25-12, 25-22
Sept. 8: Decatur Christian,* W 25-5, 25-23
Sept. 9: Westville (at Westville Invitational), L 25-17, 10-25, 11-25
Sept. 9: Georgetown-Ridge Farm (at Westville Invitational), W 25-14, 25-15
Sept. 9: Heritage (at Westville Invitational), L 23-25, 21-25
Sept. 9: Salt Fork (at Westville Invitational), L 25-10, 21-25, 25-27
Sept. 11: St. Thomas More, L 25-16, 17-25, 9-25
Sept. 12: at Normal Calvary Baptist,* W 25-20, 21-25, 25-23
Sept. 14: Fisher, W 25-23, 25-22

Sept. 15: at DeLand-Weldon,* L 25-17, 20-25, 22-25
Sept. 18: Normal Calvary Baptist,* L 24-26, 25-15, 23-25
Sept. 22: Decatur Lutheran,* L 16-25, 13-25
Sept. 26: Judah Christian,* W 25-16, 25-11
Sept. 29: at Buckley Christ Lutheran,* W 25-17, 25-17
Oct. 3: at Decatur Christian,* W 23-25, 25-23, 25-18
Oct. 7: Buckley Christ Lutheran* * (at Crusader Invitational), T 22-25, 25-12
Oct. 7: Judah Christian* * (at Crusader Invitational), W 25-9, 25-17
Oct. 7: Cornerstone Christian Academy (at Crusader Invitational), W 25-12, 25-18
Oct. 7: Cornerstone Christian Academy (at Crusader Invitational), W 25-4, 25-20
Oct. 7: Buckley Christ Lutheran* * (at Crusader Invitational), W 25-9, 25-14
Oct. 10: DeLand-Weldon,* W 14-25, 30-28, 25-17
Oct. 17: at Decatur Lutheran,* L 17-25, 14-25
Oct. 20: at Judah Christian,* W 25-12, 25-20
Oct. 23: Prairie Central (at Fisher, first-round Class A regional match), L 15-25, 16-25
*East Central Illinois Conference opponent
* *ECIC opponent, but match doesn't count in conference standings