Volleyball players honored by SCVCA

One of the joys of being a coach is having Shelter Island volleyball players recognized publicly for the hard work they put in during the season. The annual Suffolk County Volleyball Coaches Association’s awards dinner on Tuesday, Dec. 3 was the occasion for junior Miranda Marcello and senior Johanna Kaasik to be honored.

The event, held at the East Wind catering hall in Wading River, hosted 600 volleyball players, their family and friends. The venue was beautifully decorated with lights, trees and chandeliers and was an awesome sight. The evening was filled with food, fun and raffles. Each of the Shelter Island athletes was called up to receive their award and be applauded by the crowd.

As a standout hitter and server for the Islanders, Marcello won All League recognition, with the honor inscribed on a plaque.

Kaasik, the team’s experienced setter and on-court leader, earned All Classification honors for being a top Class D athlete. In addition, she won an All County Academic award in recognition of her outstanding efforts in the classroom. Suffolk County has more than 60 girls’ volleyball teams and the award is only given to 20 players. That is a true student-athlete achievement!

In hot-off-the-press news, I was just informed that Johanna has also been recognized by the New York Volleyball Coaches Association as a 6th team Class D All State athlete. The designation is a very nice feather in Kaasik’s cap to top off her 6-year commitment to Islander volleyball.

Congratulations to both Mandy and Johanna for their awards!