In boys volleyball, Fayetteville-Manlius would get its big test Thursday night, against unbeaten, defending Section III Division I champion Baldwinsville – and passed it in the most exciting manner possible, rallying from two sets down to stun the Bees in five.
Those first two sets were not ordinary. F-M dragged each of them well beyond the wire before B’ville claimed them by 34-32 and 32-30 margins, but instead of discouraging the Hornets, it only seemed to make them mad and more focused to turn it around.
That’s what F-M did, pulling out a 25-22 decision in the third set before controlling the fourth set 25-16 and, in the final set, holding off the Bees 25-21 to earn its biggest victory in years.
Up front, the work was well-balanced. Sam Stauffer earned 15 kills, with John Assenza getting 14 kills and three blocks. Ryan Boshart added 13 kills and six digs, with Jacob Rhea managing 11 kills and three blocks.
To feed all of them, Nick Bates had to earn a career-best 51 assists, while Jehed Zatar, manning the defensive side, earned 21 digs. B’ville saw Ryan Gell earn 29 kills and Dan Shorney gain 48 assists.
Two nights earlier, the Hornets beat Central Square in four sets, claiming close 25-21 and 25-22 decisions in the first two sets and nearly sweeping the Redhawks, though it lost the third set 26-24 before controlling the fourth set 25-15 to end it.
Bates, earning 35 assists, spread his passes out to a variety of players. Assenza led with 10 kills and six blocks, but Rhea (nine kills, seven blocks), Boshart (eight kills) and Stauffer (seven kills) were close behind. Jack Fuller added four kills as Zatar earned four digs.
