In Class A, respect flows like water in the nearby Hudson River. That's bound to happen when three of the four teams were here at last year's State Girls Volleyball Tournament. And even though, with their eighth consecutive final four appearance, Burnt Hills is used to being one of the last teams standing, Spartans coach Gary Bynon is quick to point out why it's all deserved.
"Victor has got to be the favorite," Bynon said. "Not just because they're the defending champ and very talented, but Rochester had to be the best area for volleyball this year. For them to come out of there is such a credit.
"Cornwall is probably one of the most improved teams in the state and they have a lot of weapons," Bynon continued. "East Hampton, we played them in pool play in a tournament and won 2-0, but that was early September and this is mid-November in Glens Falls."
But Bynon also likes how his team looks. Burnt Hills (23-3) made things look easy in its sectional final and state regional, respectively sweeping Queensbury and Nottingham. The Spartans have gotten great contributions from many, with 6-foot-1 junior Maria Allocco leading the way.
"She has almost a .500 hitting percentage and is approaching 400 kills. Plus, she had seven blocks against Queensbury," Bynon said.
Natalie Ziskin has become one of the top setters around, while outside hitters Lizzy Morton and Kaitlyn Valade have become weapons, especially Valvade on her serve receive.
"How aggressive our serving is and how well we serve receive will dictate a lot," Bynon said.
Victor: Because the Blue Devils played 10 girls much of the time last year, losing three of them to graduation didn't hurt as much.
It also doesn't hurt to have Victor's height: 6-0 middle hitters Annie Portland and Taylor Ryan, who coach Shelly Collins called "probably our most dominant hitter," as well as 5-10 serve receiver Mandi Mereness.
In Victor's sweep of Hamburg in the regional final, it also got 31 assists from senior setter Brigid Moore and 13 kills from senior outside hitter Jessica Fessler, both captains.
"There's not really any superstar," Collins said. "We've gotten on a roll the last five matches."
East Hampton: Since 2003, the hardest thing for the Bonackers to do - thanks many times to Harborfields - is to win the Suffolk County title. Now that they have, they're showing just what they're made of.
East Hampton fell behind two games to none before rallying to defeat Wantagh, 3-2, to win the Long Island regional final.
Senior setter Sarah Philipbar is a two-time all-county selection who was an AVCA Max Preps Player of the Week earlier in the season and averages 32 assists per match. Six-foot-two Calli Stavola is a powerful right-side hitter. The 5-10 middle hitter Myra O'Neal has become the team's most dominant hitter and blocker, while four-year starting libero Kimberly Valverde has also improved her serving game.
"They're well-rounded," coach Kathy McGeehan said. "On any given day, anyone can have a breakout day."
Cornwall: Coach Jeff Moulton said his players realize that last year - the Green Dragons' first time in the state tournament - they were just happy to be here. That won't be the case this year, as evidenced by Cornwall's determination in beating Vestal, 26-28, 25-15, 21-25, 25-17, 25-19 in the regional final to get here.
In that match, middle hitter Alex Gagliano had 26 kills and 10 blocks. Justine Duryea had 15 kills and 13 digs, while Olivia Jebb contributed 15 kills and eight digs.
"Alex had, I think, 36 attempts in that match and she had that many kills on them," said Moulton, who also pointed to the team's three-setter rotation as something different, made out of necessity when Julia Anderson was injured in practice following the sectional final. Samantha Catalanotto stepped in to join Rachel Zsido to admirably split the duties. Moulton hopes to have Anderson available this weekend.
Class A
Burnt Hills (23-3), Section II
Victor (16-4), Section V
Cornwall (17-2), Section IX
East Hampton (19-2), Section XI
Posted in Sports, High-school-and-prep on Friday, November 20, 2009 8:45 pm Updated: 8:46 pm.
© Copyright 2010, The Post-Star, Lawrence & Cooper Streets Glens Falls, NY | Terms of Service and Privacy Policy
