Bison roll into semifinals

It would have been easy for Buffalo Grove to take Oak Park lightly. The Bison entered Friday's state quarterfinals at Hoffman Estates having won 24 of their last 25 matches. Oak Park had the most losses of any team in the final eight.

But the Bison were in no mood to take anybody lightly, rolling to a 25-17, 25-21 win over the Huskies.

‘‘Not with the experiences we’ve had,’’ Buffalo Grove coach Matt Aiello said.‘‘We don't take anybody lightly.’’

Oak Park (17-23), which started a sophomore and three juniors, pushed the Bison in both games, battling to an 11-11 tie in Game 1 and taking a 10-6 advantage in Game 2 before falling.

Buffalo Grove (30-5) will face Neuqua Valley in Saturday's semifinals.

Joe Ascher and Chris Falknor led Buffalo Grove with five kills apiece. Mark Brady had four kills, and Tim Schmidt added 11 assists for Oak Park.

‘‘I think our young guys learned about the intensity it takes to play at this level,’’ Oak Park coach Don August said.