Northern Kentucky-bound Devlin Biggs makes huge plays as Marist rolls past Mount Carmel. ‘Variety and versatility.'

Chicago Tribune

4 days ago

Not only can Devlin Biggs be a menace to opponents, he can be pretty troublesome for his Marist teammates, too. The senior outside hitter takes practices as seriously as he does matches.
He doesn't ease up on anyone, according to teammate Nathen Toth.
'He's a very physical player,' Toth said of Biggs. 'It's great to have him on our side.
'If you go up against him in practice, he'll make your forearms hurt a little bit.'
Biggs, Toth and the rest of the defending state champion RedHawks have been putting a big hurt on all of their opponents during the postseason.
That includes Tuesday's 25-9, 25-13 win over Mount Carmel in the De La Salle Sectional final in Chicago. It's the seventh sectional title for Marist, which is seeking its fifth state championship.
The MIT-bound Toth tallied 10 kills, three aces and five dig for Marist (36-2). Biggs added seven kills, while Griffin McElroy chipped in with five kills and two blocks.
Rorey Donnelly made eight digs and Jacob Finley totaled 15 assists against the Caravan (17-11).
Biggs, for one, has been a bright spot all season long for the RedHawks.
'He was really excited to step into a bigger role this year,' Marist coach Jordan Vidovic said. 'All things considered, he's just another perfect example of the senior class, how they go about it every day during the season and how they try to get better even when things are going well.
'And he's added a lot. He has more than just a power game. He's added variety and versatility, and that's big for us.'
Marist takes on Lake Park (28-11) at 1 p.m. Friday in the state quarterfinals at Hoffman Estates. The Lancers beat Hersey 23-25, 25-17, 25-13 to win the Schaumburg Sectional.
Biggs, a Northern Kentucky recruit, never imagined he would be a 6-foot-3 force for Marist, ranked second in the nation by the USA Today/American Volleyball Coaches Association.
He was a 5-3 libero in seventh grade and wasn't really living up to his last name. But by the time he was a freshman, he grew to 6-1 and added two more inches after that.
The progress is all recorded in pencil on a kitchen wall at his house.
'I had a massive growth spurt and after that, I started taking volleyball seriously,' Biggs said. 'I put in hours and hours of practice. I knew I was going to grow, but I didn't think I would be this tall.'
While Biggs was getting some playing time here and there the last two seasons, he's really making his mark this spring as a senior.
'This is his first taste of being a high-impact option,' Vidovic said. 'He's really excited about the game aspect.'
Biggs will have an interesting challenge ahead in college.
Northern Kentucky will play its first season in 2026 under coach Jim Palilonis, who played on Marist's first team in 1992 and coached at St. Rita. Palilonis took an interest in Biggs early on.
'I've known him since seventh or eighth grade,' Briggs said of Palilonis. 'He coached at Purdue Fort Wayne and he recruited me for there.
'Then he ended up switching to Northern Kentucky and he recruited me there. It's brand-new team and he's bringing in five guys from Illinois.'
That list includes Lincoln-Way West's Drew Kregul.
No matter what happens this weekend, however, Briggs' high school career will be coming to an end. He said he will miss his teammates.
'The 10 seniors are 10 of my best friends,' Biggs said. 'Outside of volleyball, we're hanging out all of the time. They make practices so fun.
'This season is so sick. Playing with this team is so much fun, and we've been able to have fun and still be serious.'