Enthusiasm and hard work marks volleyball team: Searching for first win

It’s the end of September and the volleyball team is halfway through its league schedule. We’re starting to see the fruits of our labors in practice: each athlete is becoming more confident in their skills, and team concepts are well established. Leaders on the court are embracing their roles, as are those players whose contributions may be more sporadic, but just as important.

There are several players who are working hard in practice, but not getting much playing time, yet. They may not necessarily believe their coach when I say that they should be ready to go in at any time. However, it isn’t just something I say, it’s reality. 

On Wednesday, Sept. 23 the Pierson Whalers visited. Like the Islanders, they were in search of their first league win. The Whalers have a small varsity squad this year, only 8. At the start of the day, it seemed as though it would be a fairly even matchup.

But the Islanders had their challenges as well. Sadie Green-Clark was still away; Maeve Springer had a golf match; and Regina Kolmogorova-Weisenberg was being assessed for an injury. Once again, I found myself shifting lineups at the last minute. Natalie Mamisashvili, who had been working hard to become more comfortable in the outside hitter position, was asked to go back to the middle. Makayla Cronin, who has thus far been a defensive specialist, was tapped to play six rotations, including hitting in the front row.

In the first set, a lopsided score was due to the Whalers’ excellent serving. Despite a concerted effort in practice, serve receive continues to be our Achilles heel. In addition, the Islanders missed their first 4 serves in a row, halting any momentum. Pierson also had a confident and hard-hitting left side player.

The second set seemed like more of the same with 4 out of 5 Islander serves missed and continued frustration with serve receive. However, SI started recognizing the Whalers’ offensive tendencies, and began getting more touches against their hard hits. Emily Shepherd has good height and nice hands, and she went in to add a bigger blocking presence against the toughest Whaler hitter. 

As the opponents began to mix up their attack, quick-on-her-feet setter Elizabeth Weslek went to the floor hard in an effort to dig up a Pierson tip. Landing on an already sore hip, she had to come out to ice the injury. Danielle Rasmussen, normally a middle or left side defensive player, gamely went in on the right side, contributing on serve receive and defense.

In the third set Michelle Martinez took over for Weslek. Martinez is calm on the court and is emerging as a terrific “glue” player — one who is quiet, but rarely makes a mistake. Ella Fundora took on the responsibility to run the court as the sole setter in the 5-1 formation. We had discussed and briefly practiced the 5-1 (five hitters/attackers and one setter), but within the faster pace of competition it was hard to implement on the fly. Luckily, line-up checks are unlimited and I used several to sort players to their proper positions and calm frazzled nerves. 

The third set was more evenly played, with rallies taking place much more often. Juliana Medina chased down errant balls and made some great saves. She also served an ace. Lily Potter is an unflappable, positive player and team leader who keeps athletes’ spirits up. Lexi Bartilucci, who is invaluable in her flexible role as libero, dug up several Whalers spikes. Beyond their individual skills, these three veteran varsity players are important in keeping the team positive and cohesive. 

Pierson took the match, 3-0, but the momentum shift in the third set was nice to see.

On Friday, Sept. 26, Long Island was battening down the hatches for the approaching nor’easter. The Greenport-Southold team arrived at the gym early, hoping to beat the storm. As we waited for the referee to arrive, the teams began their warm-ups. Ironically, the teams ended up with synchronous stretching routines, resulting in a humorous back-and-forth counting competition.

The banter broke the pre-competition tension and the Islanders played more freely than two days previously. While glitches are still apparent, there were longer rallies and much better communication. Defense was much improved. Lida Kendall-Posner made her mark staring down some tough Porter serves. Lily Brigham roamed the back row on defensive, passing freeballs to the setter. Kolmogorova-Weisenberg put up a resounding block, putting the Porter offense on notice. Cronin did an excellent job picking up a tricky tip. 

Serving performance was notably better. The team served at a 75% rate, their highest of the season. There were also 8 aces, the best to date. While Greenport-Southold walked away with the victory, the energy and team cohesiveness was heartwarming to see. As a bonus, there were no injuries this game.

With the golf season winding up the first week of October, soon there will be far fewer practice and match conflicts for our dual athletes. With many matches still ahead of us, I am very excited about the enthusiasm and potential of this team.

There are three remaining home games, all starting at 4:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 2, is against Center Moriches. Wednesday, Oct. 7, is the annual Dig Pink breast cancer fundraiser against Port Jefferson — wear your pink and make a donation to the Side-Out Foundation. Friday, Oct. 9, will be our Senior Game against Mattituck.