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Sports

Excitement Builds Around Broncos' Volleyball

Three all-conference players return and highlight a depth filled team.

Barrington’s coach Rob Ridenour believes that the Broncos’ success late in this season will depend on two factors.

“Our practices are going to provide great competition and this is something we can really embrace,” said Ridenour about the team he feels has the best depth he has ever coached at Barrington.  “We have a lot of guys competing for positions.”

“And if we can maintain a competitive work ethic through May, I think we can have some success at the end of the year,” he went on to say of the other factor that would help lead the Broncos to a winning season.

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The Broncos, who and were MSL West champions last year, are hoping to continue building on that success and it’s going to start with the strength of the returning players according to Ridenour.

“We have a strong group returning this year that gained a lot of varsity experience last season,” he said. “The biggest strength of this team is our overall athleticism and blocking.”

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The athleticism starts with the returning of all-conference and all-area players seniors Tommy Leonard (committed to USC-) and Austin Czarnecki who made season long contributions on the way to their (Broncos lost 25-21, 29-27) last year.

“With Leonard and Czarnecki, we have two guys that want to prove they are among the best in the state at their position,” said Ridenour.

And according to Ridenour, Leonard and Czarnecki will be pushed all season long but not necessarily by the various coaches.

“(Taylor) Ganzer provides us a competitive desire and really pushes the guys around him,” he said of his senior setter that was also all-conference and all area a year ago.

Ridenour is looking to his seniors to not only lead the team but build consistency that he felt may have cost his team last year.

“When we struggled last year, we had stretches of hitting and serving errors that multiplied,” he said.  “The keys for us (this year) will be effective pressure serving, side out efficiency, and error minimization.”

Hoping to minimize errors and take on more predominant roles, Ridenour is looking to the emergence of two-year varsity starter Jeff Hochstein, a continuation of last year’s success from Peter Van Fossan and new comer Charlie Spry.

“I think Hochstein, Spry, and Van Fossan are poised for breakout years,” Ridenour said.  “All three have worked hard and most importantly, have an intense desire to be great.”

There is good reason for the excitement that surrounded this year’s team but according to Ridenour the team still needs to maintain the focus on their goals.

“While we are excited for the new season and it will be important that we translate that excitement into improvement,” Ridenour said.  “We need to take our goals piece by piece and build throughout the season.”

Barrington will start their season on the road begining Tuesday, March 20th against St. Viator.  After a MSL conference crossover against Prospect, Barrington then participates in the Buffalo Grove Invitational to end the month of March.

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