Timothy Christian's girls volleyball team swept Bishop McNamara 25-19, 25-13 on Thursday, Oct. 1, pushing the Trojans to 23-4 overall and a perfect 6-0 in Chicagoland Christian Conference (CCC) play.
Sophomore outside hitter Maddie Rudman led the attack with eight kills and six digs, according to Shaw Local's sports roundup. Junior Mia VanHekken added six kills and seven digs. Setter Sophie Kwak ran the offense with 20 assists and seven digs, while senior defensive specialist Kate Vogelzang contributed five digs.
The Trojans have won nine of their last 10 matches since starting the season 14-3. Timothy Christian finished second at the Manteno tournament in late September, standing at 17-4 as of Sept. 21, the Daily Herald reported.
They haven't lost a CCC match all season.
Coach Scott Piersma praised Kwak in a Daily Herald column published Sept. 22, when the team was 17-4. "Sophie has been a great leader for our offense," Piersma said at the time.
VanHekken leads the team in kills per set at 3.5, according to MaxPreps stats updated through Sept. 30. Senior Audrey Williams, a third-year starter, was hitting .444 with 24 total blocks and a team-high 44 serving aces. As of Sept. 21, Williams' .447 hitting percentage led all IHSA Class 3A players and ranked fifth in the state, per the Daily Herald. Vogelzang paced the back row at 3.7 digs per set.
Piersma told Shaw Local in an Aug. 24 preseason preview that the program was chasing a fourth straight conference championship and a program-record fifth consecutive regional title.
Timothy Christian's JV squad has matched the varsity's pace. The JV team won the Timothy Invitational and had taken 11 of its last 12 matches as of Sept. 29, according to the school's athletics page. The freshman team also won its own four-team tournament on Sept. 26.
At 6-0 in conference, the Trojans are on track for that fourth straight CCC title and a fifth consecutive regional crown.
