It’s been over a year since spring and summer sports last competed in competitive events at H-F, and like many of the winter sports, spring and summer sports are playing through unusual times.

Boys Volleyball

After only having two seniors on what was a very young team in the 2019-2020 season, the 2020-21 boys volleyball team is very experienced and has a lot to prove on the floor this season after not being able to play one game last season due to COVID-19.

Mark Ciesielski is in his first season as the boys volleyball head coach after being an assistant coach for the girls volleyball. So far the boys are off to a successful start with an 8-5 record this season. Before losing to Lincoln-Way West on May 6, H-F was on a hot streak, winning five of their past six games.

With a whopping 10 seniors on the squad, Vikings will have to rely on their returners in order to continue their success in the 2021-2022 season.

Wrestling

New head coach Jim Sokoloski becomes the wrestling team’s third coach in the last six seasons. After having its season pushed from the winter to the summer, the program looks to take a big step towards building a powerhouse program.

Out of the 17 active wrestlers on the team, only one of them is a senior. The team is a mixture of youthful and experienced as they also have 10 juniors. There is no state series as the postseason only goes as far as conference championships.

For Sokoloski and company, the goal is to gain experience in 2021 and gear up for what is likely to be a full, normal season in 2022.

Boys Lacrosse

After their entire 2019-2020 season was canceled, this extremely young boys’ lacrosse is looking to have a productive 2020-21. 

For a lot of players, this season will be very different than most due to the fact that many players haven’t played in over a year. This is the case with many underclassmen who have also never gotten to play in a high school lacrosse game prior to this season. 

In the 2018-19 season the Vikings entered the playoffs as the four seed along with a first round bye. In their sectional quarterfinal game against Washington they fell by a score of 9-14 to end their season.

With 10 seniors, six juniors, three sophomores and freshmen the Vikings are hoping to gain some experience for future seasons.

Girls Soccer

Like many of the other spring and summer sports in 2020-21, the Girls’ Varsity Soccer team is very young compared to other seasons. 

This season the Vikings will only have six seniors along with one junior, five sophomores and freshmen on the field for this shortened season. 

The last time the girls were on the field was in the 2018-19 sectional playoffs. After defeating Summit by a score of 4-0 in the regional semifinals, they lost 3-1 to Tinley Park, who later went on to win the sectional championship, in the regional finals.

The Vikings have a lot to look forward to in the next few years with at least 11 returning players going into next season.

Baseball

After having their entire season cancelled last year, the H-F Baseball team is looking to continue what they started in 2018-19.

After eight years coaching at Brother Rice, head coach John McCarthy and his Vikings finished with a record of 18-17 in his first season coaching at H-F.

After losing by a score of 8-7 to Providence Catholic in the regional semifinals in the 2018-19 playoffs, the Vikings have unfinished business heading into the 2020-21 season. 

With 14 seniors, 12 juniors and six sophomores, the Vikings are going to have to rely on experience on the diamond this season.

Softball

The H-F softball team is looking to make a deep playoff run after losing in the regional semifinals in the 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons. 

The 2020-21 squad has the leadership to do just that. With five seniors and sophomores along with four juniors, the softball team is going to gain a lot of experience for the returning players for next season.

Boys/Girls Track and Field

After finishing as state runner-ups in 2017 and 2018, the girls track team broke through and won the state championship in 2019. After having their 2020 season cancelled due to the coronavirus, it appeared that the girls finally got their chance to defend their title in 2021.

Unfortunately, there was a positive test within the program, and now the season is once again in jeopardy as it stands. Before the postponement though, there was a shake-up in the coaching staff as Zontavious Johnson is no longer the head coach after three very successful seasons. Terrence Terry fills in the hole and will have a fresh start when the team is COVID-free. Senior Ayah Mustafa and junior Alexandria Edison are the only current runners left from the 2019 championship team.

Fortunately for the boys track team, they are currently healthy and are looking to get over the same hump that their counterparts jumped over. The boys finished as state runner-ups in 2018 and 2019, and are looking to make the third time the charm with a championship.

With the core of Isaiah Hubbard, Robert Scott, Abdul-Karim Toheeb-Lawal, Jamar McMillan, and Anthony Mootry II, the team has the experience and the talent to win state.

Boys Tennis

The H-F boys tennis team is looking forward to an exciting season with all the returning players from the past three seasons. Though the 2019-2020 season was canceled, this Vikings team consists of five seniors, three juniors, and one sophomore.

In the 2018-19 playoffs, the Vikings fell short in both singles and doubles in the first round to Jacobs and Whitney Young respectively. 

After not having much success in singles and double matches in the 2018-19 playoffs, the future is bright for the Vikings with many returning players going into the 2021-22 season.