In consecutive sweeps, the Jamesville-DeWitt and Fayetteville-Manlius boys volleyball teams earned opportunities to play for regional championships this weekend – and J-D kept going from there, giving itself a chance to win a state championship this weekend.
The Red Rams, in the opening round of the Division II state tournament, handled Clarkstown North in three sets last Wednesday night at Cicero-North Syracuse High School and the Hornets, in Division I, did the same against Scarsdale.
Both of the visiting Section I teams brought confidence to their respective matches. Clarkstown North, in particular, felt good, having not lost a single set in any head-to-head match all season.
But J-D took control with the first five points of the match, all on Avery Kielbasinski’s serve, and never got caught in the opening set, cruising to a 25-13 win as Aidan Bates, Luke McQuaid and Tim Cooper also served well.
Then, in the second set, a 10-2 run again put the Red Rams in control, leading to a 25-14 decision. Clarkstown North did try to rally in the third, using a 5-0 run to tie it 14-14, but J-D got five straight points on Cooper’s serve and closed out the match 25-19.
McQuaid finished with 13 kills and three aces. Bates got eight kills, nine digs, two aces and two assists. Aaron Ko contributed seven kills, with Michael Ryan getting four kills and Kielbasinski three kills and two blocks. Cooper passed to all of them with 29 assists, adding two aces and four blocks.
As that match concluded, F-M’s players cheered on their Section III counterparts before taking the court, having won its first sectional title in 28 years when it claimed a five-set epic over C-NS in the Nov. 5 sectional final.
Scarsdale started out well and led 13-11 in the opening set, only to see F-M go on a 14-2 run to all put away the set by an eventual 25-19 margin. Then the Hornets broke out of a 6-6 tie with a 14-7 push that created another 25-19 win.
Leading most of the third set, too, the Hornets closed it out 25-18 in the third, Connor Sugar finishing with 33 assists as Charles Addonizio got nine kills and Kieran Egan had eight kills. Chris Cleary and Mike McAndrew had six kills apiece as Max Danaher added five kills.’
On Saturday night at Bethlehem High School, J-D faced Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake and F-M took on Shenendehowa, each side looking to advance to next Saturday’s state championships in Albany.
J-D dominated its match with the Spartans, prevailing 25-9, 25-20, 25-15 led by McQuaid’s 12 kills and Ko’s nine kills. Cooper finished with 24 assists as Bates got seven digs, three kills and three assists.
F-M, meanwhile, lost the first two sets to Shen and, on the brink of getting swept, pulled out the third 25-23. But there would be no comeback as the Plainsmen, by a 25-21 margin in the fourth, earned the regional crown.
Sugar still finished with 36 assists. Clearly had a team-best 11 kills, with Danher getting nine kills as Addonizio and McAndrew each finished with six kills. Danaher and Addonizio both earned six digs.
Only Jamesville-DeWitt’s girls, who upset Fulton for the girls sectional Class A championship, found it unable to advance from its regional opener, falling in three sets to Burnt Hills at Westhill High School.
In the 25-20, 25-11, 25-15 defeat, the Spartans proved too strong for the Red Rams, though Cadence Milligan still had 11 assists, four aces and eight digs. Kanami LaClair added three aces as Claire Trevisani had a team-best four kills. Aaliyah Anderson had three kills and Zamora McBride had six digs.
As the J-D girls season concluded, the boys Red Rams would have one more week of work remaining. Then, on Saturday at Albany’s Capital Center, J-D would, at 10 a.m., play four sets against Western regional champion Spencerport and Long Island champion Hauppague, the top two advancing to the championship round at 3 p.m.
