Trojans go 3-0 to win Chesterton Boys Volleyball Invitational, taking down South Bend St. Joseph in two sets in the championship match

TOM KEEGAN
Onwardtrojans.com

The moment the teams playing in the title match of the Chesterton Boys Volleyball Invitational warmed up, the striking size disparity popped. It certainly was not lost on the Trojans’ tallest player, 6-foot-9 senior middle blocker Randy Deutscher.
The first thing Deutscher did was “tell the setter he needs to set me more because it’s a guaranteed kill.”
And that was pretty much what happened.
When junior Zane Westerlund wasn’t serving aces or soaring for kills of his own during a 12-point run, Deutscher was angling unreturnable balls crashing onto the floor.
Completing a 3-0 day for the title in the six-team, best-of-three tournament, the Trojans handled South Bend St. Joseph, 25-15, 25-9.
Deutscher led the way with 10 kills vs. the Huskies. Westerlund – Coach Cathy Dilbeck calls him Westerlund Airlines – had nine to go with three aces and just one error in 19 serves. Keith Ward contributed 14 assists and Declan Ringler had eight.
Deutscher has come a long way as an athlete, eventually growing into his body and performing so well as a middle blocker he will continue playing volleyball in college. He committed to Trine University, an NCAA Division III school in Angola.
“I feel like I’ve gotten better physically to be able to attack the ball at the net and have gotten more mature and smarter,” Deutscher said. “It’s somewhat easier for me to be consistent because of my advantages with my height, but I’ve worked hard to get where I am.”
He is a man with a plan. He said he will study exercise science at Trine and will pursue a doctorate in physical therapy.
For now, he’s enjoying playing for the 11-2 Trojans.
“I think the team is coming along great from the start of the season,” Deutscher said. “We’ve had a lot of growth and development with hitter and setter connections and also with the back row being able to communicate and get a lot more balls up.”
Deutscher ranks second in kills with 83, behind only Westerlund (158) and leads the team with a .410 hitting percentage.
“If Randy can be locked and loaded every single time, he’s going to be hard to stop,” Dilbeck said.
The Trojans started Saturday’s tournament with a 25-12, 25-8 win over Kankakee Valley. Next, Chesterton defeated South Bend Riley 2-1, winning the first set 25-13, losing the second 21-25, and winning the third 25-21.
Dilbeck gave extended playing time to the reserves in the second set.
“They’re all good players,” Dilbeck said. “It’s not like basketball where they get winded and you need a sub. Volleyball is typically a six-rotation sport, so subs, unless you’re like a libero or a middle, subs are not really highly happening in our sport, so it was good to get some guys off the bench. It’s well-deserved because they practice hard.”
For the most part, the reserves rewarded the coach for giving them the extra time with solid performances. Junior Elliot Mehling, for example, made strong plays from the right side of the net, particularly in the second set of the championship match.
“I think that Elliot has come along great,” Deutscher said. “The joke was at the start of the season that he had somehow gotten better over the summer without doing anything, but he’s been putting in a lot of work in practice and I’m super proud of him.”
So how did Mehling, a football player, get better at volleyball in the offseason without playing volleyball?
“I just got more athletic lifting during the summer and during football season and the offseason,” Mehling said.
He agreed with Deutscher that the team consistently improves and that the connections between setters Ringler and Ward and the hitters have grown and added that “the passing, especially from Adam (LeNeave), has been great.”
Riding a six-match winning streak, the Trojans resume their schedule Monday night at home vs. Merrillville. For now, home means Westchester Middle School because the main gymnasium floor at the high school is being refurbished.