Marist’s Ethan Kuziela is like a whole new person.
He opened last season at 5-foot-10 and backed up star right-side hitter/setter Christian Teresi. As a senior this year, Kuziela closed his high school career as a 6-foot-6 setter and right-side hitter.
And helped his team win a state championship.
“This feels pretty good,” Kuziela said, beaming afterward. “After last year, I could only imagine playing in the front row and knocking the heck out of the ball. It’s awesome.”
The RedHawks put an exclamation point on their awesome season Saturday night, rolling past York 25-21, 28-26 in the boys volleyball state championship match at Hoffman Estates.
Kuziela, an Illinois Wesleyan recruit, tallied five kills, 13 assists, three digs and two block assists for Marist (39-2). Teresi, the Ohio State commit, added nine kills, 12 assists and four digs. Nathen Toth totaled six kills and five aces, Luke Brannigan had six kills and Rorey Donnelly had nine digs.
Jack Bute paced York (37-5) with eight kills and Ben Brown followed with seven.
It’s the fourth state championship and the first since 2019 for Marist, which came in ranked No. 2 in the nation in the latest USA Today/American Volleyball Coaches Association poll.
The RedHawks reached the final match of the season by defeating two-time defending state champion Glenbard West 28-26, 26-24 in a wild semifinal held earlier in the day.
Toth led with 16 kills. Teresi added eight kills and 17 assists. Kuziela had four kills and 17 assists.
Teresi already provided grace with his setting and power with his hitting. With newfound height, Kuziela developed similar skills, giving the team more problems for opponents to worry about.
“Ethan doesn’t have a lot of hitting experience, but you would never guess that because his hitting is awesome,” Toth said. “Having two setters who can hit — it’s hard to defend against that.”
Kuziela’s growth spurt wasn’t expected, but he’s reached new heights with the extra height.
“Last year, I was too short to play right side, and this year, I was able to play it,” he said. “The doctor said I would top out at 6-1 or 6-2, but I passed that. It’s definitely been a big jump.”
And there’s supposedly some room to grow.
“The growth plates are still open, but I don’t know,” Kuziela said. “I personally think I’ll stop growing, but maybe I can squeeze maybe an inch or two more.”
Marist coach Jordan Vidovic wasn’t sure how Kuziela and his emerging frame would work out.
“It started to look like an option and we just rode with it,” Vidovic said of letting Kuziela swing away. “He had some tough conversations with me this year, I’ll tell you, just on the mental end.
“I was really tough on him. We knew what he could do, but could he do it in this setting? He really stepped it up in a major way. I don’t know if we would have won this without him.”
Kuziela is heading to Illinois Wesleyan a new man as well. When he committed, he was still 5-10.
“I shot up, so they are getting a little bounce out of it,” Kuziela said of the Titans.
St. Ignatius’ Michael Eastman, Kuziela’s cousin, was one of the first commits for Illinois Wesleyan in 2021 when the program started. He was named the team’s MVP this season.
“I wish he had one more year so we could play together,” Kuziela said. “But it didn’t work out.”
It also appears Marist is going to stay at No. 2 in the nation. Loyola won California’s Division I championship in mid-May. Could a No. 1 ranking in the country be in the cards next year?
“Absolutely,” Kuziela said. “With who is coming back, they don’t need the seniors. They’re all good.”
Jeff Vorva is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.
