Bengals prove dominant against Richards

A key to season success for Oak Forest’s volleyball team was going to be building a team around Dylan Maziur, the lone returning starter from last season.

If Tuesday’s South Suburban crossover at Richards was any sign of where the team is, the Bengals are heading into the final month of the season playing their best ball.

Dominating at the net and using a balanced attack, Oak Forest was a convincing 25-18, 25-20 winner at Richards.

“We’re a team, and it’s not just ‘get me the ball,’ ” Maziur said. “We spread it around, and teams have no idea where the ball is going. They think the ball is going to me every time, and things open up.”

The senior outside hitter led Oak Forest with eight kills and three blocks. It was the supporting cast that helped key the win. Cody Owens dished out 16 assists to go with four blocks, while Tim Loeding had six digs, five blocks and four kills.

“These guys are getting more comfortable and feeling more confident,” Oak Forest coach Amanda Brown said. “They’re learning the game more and understanding their roles so they can contribute.”

Oak Forest put itself in the driver’s seat in the race for the conference title, improving to 10-1 in the South Suburban and 13-10 overall.

It was the play at the net that proved to be the difference for the Bengals. Going up 20-10 in the first game, six Oak Forest blocks punctuated the early run.

“Blocking was almost the entire match, and we’ve struggled with it throughout the season,” Maziur said. “We get a block, and we’re excited because it doesn’t always happen for us. (Richards) gets down, and we’re way up.”

Richards (14-6, 10-2) stayed close in the second, down two points as late as 19-17, but Maziur (2 kills) and Loeding (kill) helped the visitors pull away late. A Richards service error ended the match.

The Bulldogs kicked off a brutal two-week conference stretch Tuesday where they will face conference front-runners Oak Forest, Reavis, and Oak Lawn.

“Our guys got to shake this one off,” Richards coach Troy Grevengoed said. “It is a lesson learned tonight. Oak Forest played very efficiently, and they brought it at the net.”

Nick Costa (6 kills), Mutasem Dainah (5 kills), Jeremy Norton (4 kills, 18 digs), Nadeem Razick (15 assists) and Ryan Sautkus (29 digs) all contributed for Richards.

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