GLEN CARBON – Father McGivney was the dominant team from the opening service, and swept a young Bunker Hill team 25-10, 25-13 in a boys' volleyball match this past Thursday afternoon, April 3, 2025, at the McGivney gym. The Griffins appear to be rounding into shape for a formidable season in the spring of 2025.
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The Griffins meet one of the state's finest teams on Monday night, April 7, 2025, at Belleville East.
The Griffins improve to 4-4, and after Belleville East travels to Edwardsville for a 5:30 p.m. match on Thursday, Apr. 10, 2025. The Griffins host Belleville West at 5 p.m. on Friday, April 11.
The Griffins took a 19-7 lead in the first set against Bunker Hill, and seven straight points at the outset of the second set to take an 8-1 lead, and went on from there to take the set and match.
“I’m pretty proud of the boys,” McGivney head boys volleyball coach Woody Halbrook said after the match. “They let our subs get in, and get a little court time, some quality touches.”
McGivney is one of the smallest schools in the state with a boys' volleyball program, and the sport is one of the very few remaining that is a one-class, all-comers state playoff system at the end of the season. The chance the Griffins play against larger schools doesn’t faze the team at all.
“No, it’s about the quality of play,” Halbrook said. “As long as the boys are willing to work hard, they can compete with just about anyone.”
The Griffins lost six seniors to graduation in 2024, so preseason practice was a bit different this spring. Halbrook said the team is in a rebuilding season this year, but enthusiasm was the same as always.
“Preseason was a little different than the last couple of years,” Halbrook said. “We graduated six seniors, five of them were starters, so we kind of have to do a rebuilding year this year. We’re still trying to find ourselves.”
Halbrook’s goals and aspirations for the club are the same as anyone else’s, of course.
“Well, I’m hoping, for their sake, that we can actually go a little bit further in the playoffs , as far as regionals go,” Halbrook said. “It’d be nice to get two or three games in the regionals, but yeah, we’re keeping our sights set, as far as we possibly can.”
Halbrook is definitely looking ahead to having fun with his players in the 2025 campaign.
Halbrook said his boys are “a good group, they’re excellent students, and that’s first and foremost, they have to be good students first. Academics at McGivney are above and beyond. It’s just an excellent educational facility.”
The coach is also hopeful that the Griffins will be able to break a school record for most wins in a season.
“I think that right now, the boys are trying to shoot for a new season record,” Halbrook said. “But they’re really going to have to get on a roll. Last year, we had 21 wins, so they’re really going to have to button down. I have a lot of fun seniors; I’m going to miss them when the season’s over, but again, we’re pretty young, so looking forward to the next two years, too. Right now, just work hard, and get some quality touches.”
The Griffins, behind the service of Jack Bukovac, scored the first five points of the opening set, before the Minutemen were able to cut the advantage to 5-2. The Minutemen were able to score five on the next seven points, behind the play of Caleb Greeling and Carlson, to make the score 9-7, but then with the score 10-7, Anthony Harkins served up nine straight points, with Bukovac helping to lead the way, to give the Griffins a 19-7 lead. McGivney then scored six of the set’s final nine points to win 25-10, and take a one-set lead.
In the second set, after the teams split the first two points, Bukovac served up six straight points to give the Griffins an 8-1 lead, then Wyatt Otto served up three points in a row for the Minutemen to come back to within 8-5.
McGivney got the ball back at 9-5, then extended its lead to 14-10, then scored seven of the next eight points, going up 21-11.
A kill from Baysaa Naranbaatar cut the lead to 21-13, but the Griffins scored the final four points, with Bukovac serving out the match to make the final 25-13, and a straight-set win.
Dan Brannan also contributed to this story.
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