Jacobson, Brannick set table for Minooka

Minooka's Matt Lindstrom returns a serve against Plainfield South.
(Larry Kane/For the Herald News)

Font Size

Email

Bookmark

Black Text

White Text

One setter was named after a major league baseball player. At one time, he was a promising young pitcher himself.

The other setter is a candidate for the Comeback Player of the Year award in the Southwest Prairie Conference.

Ryne Jacobson and Robbie Brannick work together to make the Minooka boys volleyball team go, often in the relative anonymity that comes from sacrificing glamor for playing role parts.

Brannick had 12 assists, 10 digs, three kills and three blocks in a 25-10, 25-19 victory over Plainfield South on Thursday night at Minooka’s South Campus gym.

Jacobson added 13 assists, eight digs and two aces.

Both once were full-time hitters. Now, one or the other touches the ball on nearly every rally as they team up to run Minooka’s 6-2 offense. The offense is designed to take advantage of their ability to spread the wealth as well as feast at the net.

“Well, Robbie (Brannick) has set before and he does have very good hands,” Minooka coach Janel Grzetich said. “But he’s a very strong hitter. So, in my head, I wanted him to hit and set. The only way to do that is to run a 6-2. Ryne (Jacobson) also has very good hands and is a strong hitter.

“So, that kind of seemed like the best option for our team.”

Jacobson, a junior right-side hitter/setter, first started playing volleyball in sixth grade at Troy Middle School. He was always an outside hitter — and attacker — until this season. He was asked to make the transformation from power hitter to a table-setter, all for the good of the team.

“Maybe I put high expectations on him,” Grzetich said. “But he’s lived up to them. I’ve definitely pushed him and put him in roles that he’s not as comfortable with, but he’s done everything very well so far.”

Minooka is blessed with a big front line and a number of powerful hitters, the list topped by 6-4 junior Matt Phillips. He pounded down 12 kills in the two-game sweep of the Cougars that pushed the Indians’ record to 8-2 overall and 6-1 in conference play. Kevin Hannon and Adam Pruim added four kills. John Hynek had three blocks and Matt Lindstrom 14 digs.

What Minooka needed was a quarterback, someone with smarts, someone to bark out signals and deliver the ball to its playmakers.

Jacobson fit the bill. He ranks in the top five percent of a class of 600. He is a member of the National Honor Society and Minooka’s Athletic Leadership Council. He made a decision to ditch baseball in favor of volleyball years ago even though baseball was at the forefront of his parents’ decision to name him “Ryne” — they’re big Cubs fans. He could bring the fastball in his day, too.

“I grew up watching the Cubs,” Ryne Jacobson said. “I love baseball. I played until I was 12. I just wanted something new to do, I guess. I got bored with baseball. I like volleyball more now. It’s high-intensity. You’re always doing something on the court.”

Brannick, a senior right-side hitter/setter who will play next season for Grand Canyon University, set for one match during his junior season and then was sidelined because of tendinitis in his knees. After undergoing rehab, he returned in the off-season to play a right-side hitter position on his club team.

He first gained varsity experience as a setter during his sophomore year at Minooka.

“We have more options with two setters,” Brannick said. “If the first ball comes to me, I can pass and Ryne (Jacobson) can take the set. That way we still can get a decent ball to our outside hitter, which usually is Matt (Phillips). He’ll usually put the ball away. Or it can work vice versa. Ryne will get the ball to me, and I can set anybody on the court.

“So, it’s better for us defensively and offensively. We’re both still able to hit. And it throws teams off, too.”

Jacobson’s quick set led to Hynek’s tip kill at the end of a 8-0 run for Minooka in Game 1 of its rout of Plainfield South. Phillips served all eight points in the run and had two aces as the Indians roared to a 10-4 lead.

South (5-12-1, 3-4) did a better job of hanging close in Game 2, in large part because of the hitting of co-captain Ben Simmering and Cody Langlois. Simmering connected for a kill shot that pulled the Cougars within 18-14.

Brannick scored on a tip kill and then served two straight points as Minooka moved back to a 21-14 lead. Jacobson later closed out the match in fitting fashion — with a service ace.

He pictures himself as a work in progress.

“I’m still trying to get there — I’ve still got a lot to learn,” Jacobson said. “If I can just quicken up my feet, but if I keep working with my hands I’ll get there soon enough.”

Brannick serves as his role model and teacher.

“He’s still learning — I’m trying to show him a lot,” Brannick said. “But he’s way better than when he began. So, I’m proud of him. Not only does he set me, he sets the whole team. He’s athletic. He does a good job.”