In the fall, Eric Antkiewicz pulled double duty for St. Laurence. He played soccer and was a kicker for the football team.
He’s also serving double duty for the volleyball team this spring as a setter and right-side hitter in the Vikings’ 6-2 offense.
The kicker?
He has never set before in his life.
“Our setter from last year graduated and I knew we weren’t going to have one this year,” he said. “When tryouts came around, the coaches let me hit and set. And I really love setting now.”
Both Antkiewicz and freshman setter Matthew Suchecki had plenty of options to choose from Wednesday night during a 25-23, 25-17 nonconference victory over Marian Catholic in Burbank.
Antkiewicz led a balanced attack for St. Laurence (6-3) with six kills, while junior outside hitter Piotr Nowobilski added five and Patrick Stock had four. Jacob Haney had three kills to pace Marian (1-7).
St. Laurence coach Ellen Yopchick said Antkiewicz is a high-energy player. He confirmed setting helps balance out his emotions.
“It lets me calm down on the court,” he said. “I’m very energetic. It allows me to spread things out and get the ball to my teammates.”
“He’s an incredible team player and will do whatever it takes to compete,” Yopchick said. “We asked him to step up with setting, and he’s doing everything he can to help us out there.”
Antkiewicz has committed to Carthage as both a kicker and punter.
The Vikings, meanwhile, were stinging from a 25-8, 25-17 loss Tuesday night to St. Rita.
But Game 1 Wednesday was tight with eight ties and four lead changes before the Vikings closed it out on a net violation by Marian.
It was more of the same early in Game 2. There were six ties and three lead changes for a 6-6 deadlock before the Vikings broke the game open.
At one point, St. Laurence had a 10-point run, including a stretch where Antkiewicz had back-to-back kills followed by a block for a 14-8 lead.
Nowobilski, who pounded down some hard kills against the Spartans, said he and the team decided to just move on and forget the match against St. Rita.
“I had a horrible game at Rita, and instead of me pouting about it, my teammates kept telling me, ‘Tomorrow is a new day,'” he said. “And what happened, happened.
“We’re a team if we go down once, we will bounce right back twice as strong.”
What’s notable about the Vikings is how they have a winning record without the benefit of any club players.
The group is top heavy with multisport athletes, which Yopchick said has been a big key.
“The beauty of it is they are competing all year long,” she said. “That’s what separates them from other schools who don’t have club players.
“Our athletes are playing football in the fall or golf or soccer, then they are going into another sport. We’re really fortunate that way, and they enjoy competing.”
One of the best players on for St. Laurence has been senior libero Thomas Suchecki, who’s all over the court flying around and diving for digs.
Suchecki, who played golf and soccer for the Vikings, is committed to Benedictine for soccer.
“I played volleyball in middle school and really wanted to continue it,” he said. “Freshman year I tried out, and I was the only freshman on varsity.
“In middle school, I played setter, and this is completely different. I like to say I’m an athlete. I can move around and stay active.”
Jeff Vorva is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.