The new kid on the block actually has the look of an old hand.
And now he has a signature victory, too.
Corey Frain, the 6-foot-5 senior middle hitter in his third year playing on the varsity level, stood tall at the net in upstart Joliet's 25-20, 25-19 victory over perennial power Lincoln-Way East in the home opener for the Steelmen on Tuesday. Not only did he pound down a match-high eight kills, but he also teamed with 6-4 junior Phillip Murray to form a blocking wall that took East out of its offense.
Frain and Murray each racked up eight blocks as JT (9-1, 1-1) swept the SouthWest Suburban Conference crossover and forced the Griffins to fight power with finesse by making use of a tipping game.
And, for East, the dinks and dunks went only so far because JT adjusted it defense and picked a number of balls off the floor, often in spectacular fashion.
"It's a big victory for us, because since I've been on the team, we haven't beaten them before," Frain said. "And it only shows what's to come for this season."
East built a 17-11 lead in Game 1 before JT fought back and took charge, first with Frain at the service line. He reeled off a string of three straight points in one stretch as the Steelmen closed to within 18-14. They tied the score 18-18 on a kill by senior setter Adam Hucek moments later and went on to close out the game on a 14-3 run.
Included in the run was an unsung-hero type of play by Hucek on a let-serve by East's Mike McKenzie. His serve banged off the top of the net and carried over to JT's side of the floor. Hucek made a sprawling one-handed save and the Steelmen went on to win the point and take a 23-19 lead.
Later, his quick set led to Murray's back-line kill shot on game point. Murray finished with three kills.
Then, in Game 2, after East jumped out to a 3-0 lead, Frain once again made like a locomotive train at the net. The Indiana-Purdue Fort Wayne recruit delivered two straight blocks in a 9-0 run that enabled JT to take a 9-3 lead. Hucek served all nine points in the flurry. He also dished out 14 assists and had five digs and four blocks.
After East pulled within 18-16, JT's Dylan Frederick answered with back-corner kill shot. Murray later served on game and match point. And Hucek scored the ending kill.
"We were all getting to the blocks real quick, and we were able to press where they were hitting really well," Frain said. "So, it helped us out a lot. Most of the time, it was two-man blocks. But, if we got the chance, it was three-man blocks."
When East (8-7, 2-1) managed to get a ball past JT's front line, Hucek was there to clean up for the Steelmen.
"He was really good," Frain said. "His sets were on target. Without him, our team is dead."
Josh Tucek added 10 points, five digs and two assists for the Steelmen. Dylan Frederick had five kills and five digs. His twin brother Greg added three kills and two aces.
"My main role is to, of course, set up the offense and get the ball rolling," Hucek said. "But I definitely have to keep the team chemistry together and make sure we all work together, on and off the court, always talking, making sure we're always doing our job, everyone is communicating and we're all getting along as a team.
"A couple of the balls tonight I noticed were going to land in, so I sacrificed myself and dove for the ball because I'm in it for the team. I don't care about myself. I'm going for the team."
"We've been working on blocking a lot -- that's one thing we really haven't done a lot of," JT coach Jason Herrmann said. "We do have some big guys. We have some tall players and big middles. We showed up tonight in blocking. I think our practice is beginning to pay off.
"Once we started blocking, blocking, blocking -- sure enough, what else are they going to be able to do but tip? Then, our defense was able to pick it up and recognize that. That's what you coach all day in practice for. It's up to them to recognize it, and they did tonight."
East was led by the all-around play of senior setter Dan Hunt. He had 28 assists, four service points, four blocks, three digs and three kills. Mike Bolhuis added seven digs and four blocks. Ryan Wallenga chipped in nine digs, and freshman Greg Mangrum finished with four aces.
"Well, when you make 14 errors -- just outright errors and not counting the ones that were blocked -- that's a problem," East coach Dawn Murphy said. "They did a great job blocking at the net, but when we just go five feet out of bounds or have a bad serve or have a poor pass 14 times and the game is only to 25, you're constantly chasing the lead, which is what happened.
"What they did is they took that momentum and ran with it. I give them a lot of praise for that. They were on top of it. In Game 2, we shook them up a little and then we made two errors. We got close and made errors -- 15 errors. That's out of 25 points. That's a struggle. You can't expect to win a match that way. It is difficult to overcome."
On Thursday, both teams will start conference matches early because of scheduling conflicts. JT plays at Lincoln-Way Central in a 5 p.m. tip-off. East hosts Lockport at 4:30 p.m.
Herrmann wasn't going to look that far ahead without savoring one of JT's biggest moments in the boys volleyball arena.
"Yeah, it's a nice win for me," he said. "I haven't had a chance to play against Lincoln-Way, coming from Plainfield and being in a different conference. I know they're one of the top teams in the area, so I'm excited.
"We're 9-1. It's a great way to start. We've had a lot of away games. This was our first home game. We wanted to come out tonight and try to win in two and make a statement with our blocking. We hustled out there and we played hard."
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