Marauders can’t stop streak of Canisius titles
Boys volleyball
by BRANDON KILIJANSKI Reporter Ken-Ton Bee
November 12, 2014

St. Joe’s had the home crowd for the Monsignor Martin League championship match on Nov. 5 and treated them to a first set win. The Marauders beat Canisius in the first game 25-21, but then dropped the next three sets in succession. Canisius won the match which gave them 15 consecutive Monsignor Martin titles.

St. Joe’s had its best serving game in the opening set, which allowed them to capitalize on stringing points together. Senior Jacob Donn used a powerful jump serve to help the Marauders win seven straight points. When he started on the serving line, Canisius led 11-10, but Donn was eventually able to give the Marauders a 17-11 lead.

Canisius had to use both timeouts during that span and it was the turning point which gave the Marauders a 1-0 lead in the match.

“We got them out of system and knew they would set to the pins,” head coach Mark Anzalone said. “They would either put a ball over that we could handle easier, or we forced them into a mistake.”

The home crowd was rocking from the start of player introductions, but even got louder once the Marauders took the first set. One of the referees told Anzalone it was the loudest match he had ever officiated.

“It was a special opportunity, not everyone gets a chance to participate in this type of atmosphere in any sport,” Anzalone said.

In the final three sets, St. Joe’s kept the pressure on Canisius but the Crusaders dug a lot of balls and starting winning points in transition. The errors started to pile up for the Marauders in all four phases of the game, and that’s what led to Canisius winning the match.

“You cant make too many mistakes against an opponent like that,” Anzalone said. “But I’m really proud of how we played. We played hard all night long and everyone noticed we laid it all out on the line.”

Senior outside hitter Anthony Berardi led the Marauders with 14 kills while Donn also had a solid night with 13 kills. In addition to them, St. Joe’s graduates five other seniors including libero Jason Brick, setter Joe Koszelak, middle blocker Bryce Donovan, outside hitter Nick Oakes and middle blocker Pat Wells.

“This was an amazing group of seniors, they’ve been playing together for four years and many have played three years of club volleyball,” Anzalone said.

In the Monsignor Martin semifinals, St. Joe’s routed St. Francis 25-15, 25-9, 25-17 after having a full week off. The Marauders dominated the match and Berardi led the team in kills once again with 10.

“Our goal was to be Monsignor Martin champions and it didn’t turn out the way we wanted to on the scoreboard,” Anzalone said. “But it’s more than just volleyball, it’s a brotherhood here. And that’s special knowing you’ve competed for each other and with each other.”

Western New York 2014 Boys Top 10 Poll - Final
Buffalo News
Tuesday, November 11, 2014

Western New York 2014 Girls Top 10 Poll - Final
Buffalo News
Tuesday, November 11, 2014

St. Mary’s crowns a dream volleyball season
By Corey Desiderio Special to the news Buffalo News
November 9, 2014

It was never a matter of if the St. Mary’s of Lancaster girls volleyball team would win the New York State Catholic High School Athletic Association championship on Sunday. It was only a matter of when.

Just four days after defeating Nardin to win its sixth straight Monsignor Martin championship, the Lancers swept St. Anthony from Long Island, 25-15, 25-22, 25-23, in front of an estimated 150 at St. Mary’s for its third NYSCHSAA title in four years.

“I still think it’s a dream,” St. Mary’s senior outside hitter Ashley Dryzmala said. “We didn’t walk in here during preseason thinking it was going to be like this. I think we walked in here and as the season progressed, we just kept getting better. Right now on this court, so many emotions are flying and we’re just all ecstatic with how this ended.”

The dream season for St. Mary’s, the top team in Western New York and the 28th-ranked team in the nation by PrepVolleyball.com, ended with a 47-0-1 match record and a 118-6 set record (both including tournaments).

Has St. Mary’s volleyball ever had a better season?

“No, record-wise no,” Lancers coach Don Pieczynski said. “There haven’t been many teams around here that have. I’d have to research it, but it was almost perfect. We won four tournaments undefeated. That just don’t happen.”

Not only did the Lancers finish the season undefeated, they did so without Duke-bound middle hitter Leah Meyer for their Monsignor Martin and NYSCHSAA championships. Meyer is nursing a right leg injury that she said will sideline her for four months.

“I’ve said all along: I know we don’t have Leah Meyer, but neither does the other team,” Pieczynski said. “Leah is such a dominating player that everyone else thinks it’s just Leah Meyer, and she’s absolutely the best player in New York State, but the rest of our kids have some pride in their game as well.”

If Meyer had it any differently, she obviously would have rather been out there on the court with her fellow Lancers through their championship runs. But players like Drzymala, a Daemen commit who had 24 out of her 76 total kills for the tournament in the final match, and junior setter Bailey Dolegowski, who had 123 total assists and 36 in the final, picked up the slack.

Pierczynski knows how hard it is to win in the Monsignor Martin and beyond year after year. That’s why this St. Mary’s team will be one the Lancers coach will remember and celebrate for a long, long time.

“When you’re on top, it’s hard to stay there,” Pierczynski said. “Everybody’s aiming for you and we had a big bull’s-eye on our back right from the start of the season … and we had to fend them off. It’s tough to do game in and game out because they’re all measuring their game against our best.”

AVCA Division I Coaches Week #11 Poll: November 10, 2014
Womans Volleyball
AVCA.org
November 10, 2014

Others receiving votes and listed on two or more ballots: Ohio 58; Duke 49; Pittsburgh 40; Creighton 38; Utah 34; Hawai'i 29; Western Kentucky 28; Oregon State 16; LSU 15; Alabama 13; Marquette 8

Three teams mentioned on only one ballot for a total of 14 combined points.

Dropped Out: Duke 25

Next Poll: November 17, 2014

AVCA Division II Coaches Top 25 Week #10 Poll: November 10, 2014
Womans Volleyball
AVCA.org
November 10, 2014

Others Receiving Votes and listed on two or more ballots: Rockhurst 85; Sonoma State 50; Central Washington 48; Central Oklahoma 35; West Florida 28; Winona State 27; Indianapolis 17; Regis 16; Dixie State-Utah 15; Point Loma 15; Fresno Pacific 14; Northern State 14

8 teams mentioned on only one ballot for a total of 58 combined points. 

Dropped Out: 

Next Poll: November 17, 2014

Will South, Eden take girls volleyball regionals 
Billies post strong fifth-set comeback
By Owen O’Brien SPECIAL TO THE NEWS Buffalo News
November 8, 2014

Melissa Postek and Kelsey Stasiak embraced each other with tears running down their faces Saturday.

The two junior volleyball players had just been through one of the toughest matches of their lives. And when her team needed her most, Postek gave one of her finest performances on a volleyball court.

Williamsville South defeated Honeoye Falls-Lima, 25-22, 12-25, 25-17, 22-25, 27-25, Saturday in the Class B Far West Regionals at Lockport High School in front of an estimated 300. Earlier, Eden never trailed in sweeping Cazenovia 25-14, 25-18, 25-17 in Class C.

Potsek led the Billies with 20 kills – including three-straight kills in the fifth set when Will South trailed, 18-13, to bring the set to within three. She also had the final kill of the evening to clinch Will South’s first trip to the far West Regionals.

Postek struggled to even put into words what the moment meant for her.

“It’s an amazement that we did this,” Postek said after a long delay.

And it certainly didn’t come easy for the Billies.

After taking the first-set 25-22, HFL recorded the first eight points of the second set. Will South dropped this set 25-12.

“Everybody realized that wasn’t the end, we had more games to play,” Postek said. “If we kept fighting, we would get it.”

After the final point, Will South students in attendance ran onto the court and celebrated with the team – regardless of how hard security tried to stop them.

Seniors Madison Clark and Jessica Miller added 18 and 16 kills, respectively. Junior libero Annalise Hoffman had 34 digs and senior setter Kim Dunkleman had 34 assists in the victory.

It all came down to the final match, which featured eight ties. The Billies lost the lead at 6-5, and never gained it back until the score was 26-25.

“Absolutely unbelievable,” said head coach Tom Sproull. “It’s as dramatic as they can make it.”

State tournament appearances are nothing new for head coach Stephen Pierce and Eden volleyball, the Raiders have won the last five state titles. But for him, this one is different.

Eden starts three sophomores and an eighth-grader. As opposed to previous seasons, he said there’s no “big-time, Division-I” players. The team has many new players and returning players in expanded roles from previous seasons.

“Previous years, we’ve always counted on certain main players, but this year, it’s not as much like that,” said senior Kailee Ballou. “This team really had to come together and work hard.”

Ballou knows what it’s like to play under pressure. She’s started for Eden since her freshman season and knew this year, her contributions would go beyond the court.

“When I first started on varsity in ninth grade, I was really shy and looking toward the captains, but now I was like I need to be a captain,” Ballou said. “At first, I was a little shaky, but then I knew I needed to lead this team on our way to States.”

Ballou had 14 kills in Eden’s victory. Sophomore Sam Burgio recorded 16 kills.

The third set between the teams was much closer than the previous two. Cazenovia pulled the set to 19-17 before Eden finished the match on a 6-0 run. Sophomore libero Molly Brier aced three of Eden’s final six points.

Will South and Eden advance to the State Championships in Glens Falls next weekend.

East Season Ends at Regionals
Girls volleyball
Buffalo News
November 8, 2014

The most successful girls volleyball season ever at Williamsville East came to a close with a 3-1 loss to Pittford-Sutherland-V in the Class A Far West at Gates-Chili. Carly Shifflet had 17 kills and 18 digs, Natalie Berrafato had 30 assists and 12 digs, and Lexi Novak 14 kills, 23 digs in the loss by scores of 19-25, 25-22, 19-25 and 18-25.

“First regional, first sectional title for Williamsville East. We’re really proud of the season. that’s for sure,” said East coach Scott Wright. “We have a mixture of people leaving but the two kill leaders, Carly Shifflett and Lexi Novak, will both be back.”

In Class AA, Penfield defeated Clarence in straight sets, 25-19, 25-22 and 25-22.

Portville (16-2) moved on by defeating Batavia Notre Dame, 25-21, 25-16, 21-25, 25-21, in the Class D regional also at Gates Chili. Shaina Griffin had 23 kills and 22 digs, Lydia Lukomski 15 kills, 8 aces and 32 digs and Taylor Lee had 23 assists and 7 kills for the Panthers.

Hamburg, Lancaster ousted by Section V schools 
Close losses in two sets trouble for Bulldogs
By Erich Neuhaus SPECIAL TO THE NEWS Buffalo News
November 8, 2014

It’s heartbreak again for the Hamburg boys volleyball team in the Division II Far West Regionals.

After the Bulldogs held leads late in both the first and second games, Section V’s Victor showed its resolve to take both games, and followed it by easily taking the third, sweeping Hamburg, 26-24, 33-31, and 25-17, at Orchard Park High School Saturday.

“This was a mirror image of last year,” said Hamburg coach Brian Carroll, who mentioned his team had a late first-game lead and tight second game last year before Victor captured the wins. “They just closed the games out better. That’s just the way it is.”

Hamburg had a 22-20 lead as standout Zach Yerington’s block put the Bulldogs’ large, enthusiastic crowd in a frenzy. But Victor battled back. A two-point service run by Colby Upham knotted the score at 23 before a Kyle Donahoe kill and a Yerington kill attempt sailed out to give the Devils the first game. 

The second game yielded even more chances for Hamburg to close out the game.

Victor only took three services with the lead before 25-25, and Hamburg even had leads of 30-29 and 31-30, but both times Victor broke the Bulldogs serves before executing a three-point rally with kills by Colin Mahan and Colin Steele, who was called for a violation at 25-25 to keep Hamburg alive, to win the second game. 

“They had to play a perfect game, and they tried too hard,” Carroll said about this team’s service game. “They got tight.”

Yerington, who will attend Ohio State next fall, had some powerful spikes throughout the match, but they were trumped by Mahan’s timely kills. Mahan, who recently signed with Loyola University in Chicago to play volleyball, contributed 18 kills in the match. 

“He was good and you have to be able to see guys like that all year if you want to be able to stop it,” Carroll said. 

Hamburg’s season ends at 18-8, while Victor (22-1) will try for its fourth state title since 2010. 

In Division I, Lancaster saw what is most likely the best team in the state in Section V’s McQuaid Jesuit. 

McQuaid (22-0), which has won three of the last four boys volleyball state titles, rolled to a 25-12, 25-18, 25-20 win.

“I told them to stay loose, which they didn’t,” Lancaster coach Jason Stang said with a laugh. “I was trying to let them know, just let it out, and play without fear.”

Lancatser (23-5) seemed to loosen up in the third game, where they erased an 11-6 deficit and closed within 18-17, but McQuaid was too much in the end. 

“I told them, ‘Let’s show them who we are here’” Stang told his players heading into the third game. “We made so many of our own mistakes that it was too much to comeback from anyone who we would’ve played. It still wasn’t perfect, but when their confidence is running high, and they don’t play nervous we play a totally different game.” 

Jay Baumann and Kenny Rudz each had eight kills for Lancaster, while Charlie Siragusa’s nine kills led the Knights.

Clarence girls keep composure, beat Frontier to win Class AA volleyball crown
By: Melissa Brawdy | Sports Hamburg Sun
Saturday November 8, 2014

Composure is the word of the year for the Clarence girls volleyball team.

Wednesday night’s (Nov. 4) highly competitive game was no different as the Red Devils beat the Frontier Falcons 3-1 to win the Class AA Girls Volleyball Championship.

“We have the word composure,” Clarence coach Michael Meyer explained after the match. “And I think they maintained their composure, which was great. I was really proud of how composed they stayed.”

In the first set, Clarence and Frontier traded leads back and forth all the way to the end before Clarence won the game 25-23. In the second set, Clarence led 22-16 near the end, but Frontier made a comeback and scored six unanswered points at the end to take the game 25-13.

But like Meyer said, the Red Devils never lost their composure. They won two more close sets 25-20 and 25-21 to take the match.

“Frontier played unbelievable tonight, and we had to weather the storm,” Meyer said. “We never got flustered. We never gave up, and we just kept coming back, and I’m very proud of them for that.”

Frontier coach Debby Schruefer also mentioned the competitiveness of the match while acknowledging that both teams played great.

“I think it was an incredible match,” she said. “Two very competitive teams. Clarence did an outstanding job of running their offense, getting us out of system. Just a lot of solid attack, counter attack.”

Both coaches wanted it known that it was a total team effort on both sides to make the match as competitive as it was.

“The great thing about volleyball is it really is a team sport,” Meyer said. “You really need all six, all seven, all ten playing.”

After mentioning Taylor Kaznowski and McKyla Brooks as key players in Frontier’s effort, Schruefer wanted to talk about the rest of the team and how they’ve played this season after losing seven starters to graduation after last season.

“We talk a lot about it’s all about team,” Schruefer said. “You can’t do it with just one person or two. You need everyone, and these kids have done that. We were the defending 2013 champs, and we graduated seven starters. So these kids, they stepped it up big time this season. They have no reason to hang their heads.”

Meyer also gave credit to his entire team’s effort, even stopping one of his players as she walked by to reassure her how important her role had been.

“Those people don’t always get their names in the paper, but [players] like Lauren Barnes and Maddie Christopher and Karley King in the back row all came up huge for us,” Meyer said. He mentioned Meghan Neelon (17 kills) and Gabbi Pacatte (18 kills) as key players but still emphasized the importance of the team.

“They don’t get set unless Lauren passes the ball and Maddie sets the ball and Graycie [Enderby] is running her backsides and we got our middles going.”

The Red Devils did all the right things to earn the win and be named Class AA champions.

“It’s not a surprise,” Meyer said when asked what worked for Clarence tonight. “We set the outside a lot. We set a lot of fours and fives. We’re a pin heading team, and when we needed big kills our big players came up. We also played great team defense. I thought we passed great.”

And, of course, Clarence stayed composed throughout the match. 

Eden to defend state championship pedigree with youthful, talented group
By: Marquel Slaughter | Sports Hamburg Sun
Saturday November 8, 2014

As autumn is to leaves falling from the trees in the northeast, Stephen Pierce and the Eden girls volleyball team are to state tournament trips. 

The Lady Raiders punched their 14th straight ticket to the NYSPHSAA tournament with a victory in the Class C Far West Regional over Cazenovia (Section III) on Saturday, Nov. 8.

Still, this win was far unlike the rest.

Pierce rosters the youngest team he has coached in quite some time with only four seniors and plenty of underclassmen taking on large roles. Some of them are go-to players even. So when the match point hit the floor at Lockport High School, what’s usually a been-there done-that attitude was replaced with plenty of excitement for many of the Raiders who are either new, or are experiencing it from a different point of view.

“People can say it’s not new, but it’s new to a lot of these kids,” said Pierce, whose squad is looking for a sixth-straight state title. “Some are on varsity for the first time. Others are in a big role for the first time. So I want to allow them to have that new excitement. That new feel.”

Kailey Ballou — who recently committed to Daemen College — and Bri Tutuska are Eden’s co-captains and lead a senior class that includes Claire Czajka and Carly Nasca. They have received much help from junior Meghan Ballou, sophomores Sam Burgio, Molly Breier and Alyssa Durski and even eighth grader Peyton Basinski.

A roster filled with returning state champions and even a national champion indeed features talent unmatched by most programs, but with the departure of players like his nieces, Kendall and Lainy Pierce (Penn State), and Heather Feldman (Gardner-Webb), everything this year’s team at Eden has been able to accomplish is unique.

“Even though, ok, yes, I’ve been there so many times, I’m especially proud of this group,” Pierce said. “We’ve been fortunate the last few years to have some big time, real advanced, D-I leaders, including two of my nieces. These seniors are great players, but they’re not these players that are coming in with this pedigree ... ‘Oh this player has been a D-I player since she was in eighth or ninth grade.’ This is a really young group, and for them to achieve this, I’m pretty proud of them.”

Burgio, who was a member of the Niagara Frontier Volleyball Club 15-1 team that became the first travel club volleyball team from New York State to win a national championship this summer, notched 16 kills in Eden’s 3-0 win over Cazenovia. Co-captain Ballou had 14 kills while Pierce rotated Nasca, Basinski, Tutuska and Meghan Ballou up front to adjust to the height the Lakers presented as Danielle Tedesco and Molly Carges gave the Section III representatives more than 6 feet of height at the net.

“Against Southwestern (in the Section VI Class C1 championship), we really struggled blocking, and Carly is an example of a senior who has maybe not been a starter much, but we really needed her to provide basically one thing, which was to solidify our block,” said Pierce. “She did a great job in that. Peyton is a little better offensively, so when we were serving and they were going to swing first, we had our best blockers out there. When they were serving and we had to swing first, I’d bring Peyton in to handle the ball a little better.”

Southwestern gave Eden a scare after claiming the first game of the C1 finals. The Raiders went through the entire postseason without giving up a set to the opposition in their state title run last fall. There was much to be excited about when they won C1 with a 3-1 decision, but the girls were a lot calmer when they joined hands after a sweep of Cattaraugus-Little Valley/Ellicottville when the stakes were higher in the C crossover game.

“I think it was because [Southwestern] was such a close game and we lost the first match,” said Durski, who had eight service aces in the win that advanced Eden to regionals. “We knew we had to pick it up, and winning that meant a lot.”

Burgio had 16 kills and Tutuska added four blocks as Eden returned to its dominant self against Western New York opponents on Nov. 6.

“We were picking up a lot of stuff balls right in the middle that were dropping,” said Tutuska, who recently committed to Bucknell as a track and field athlete. “We were letting all of them drop [against Southwestern].”

Megan Cassidy and Hannah Cialone have moved up from JV to help Sam Logan, Sara Hooper, Angela Cala, Carly DiNardo and the rest of the Raiders on their quest for a sixth straight state title.

The NYSPHSAA tournament will begin on Nov. 15 with pool play and the semifinals. The finals will be played on Nov. 16, all at the Glens Falls Civic Center.

Eden has won seven of the last eight NYS championships and 11 of the last 14. Having already helped to set the high standards of what is possibly the most decorated high school sports program in the state during their careers on varsity, the Raiders will go as far as seniors Tutuska, Nasca, Czajka and Kailey Ballou take them.

“The one thing about when you build a program is the coach actually has to do less because most of these players, who are juniors and seniors and some sophomores, they learned from those kids who were juniors and seniors when they were little,” Pierce noted. “They taught them how to train hard, how to compete, how to handle pressure...

“The older players really teach the younger ones. I don’t have a lot of rules. They know how to be on time. They know how to dedicate themselves.” 

Eden, Williamsville South are volleyball section champs
Raiders extend their title reign
By Ryan Nagelhout SPECIAL TO THE NEWS
November 7, 2014

LOCKPORT – It was business as usual for Eden and a landmark win for Williamsville South at the Section VI girls volleyball championships on Thursday night.

Eden swept Cattaraugus-Little Valley/Ellicottville in three games to win their 15th straight Class C title while Williamsville South won its first ever girls volleyball title in a three-game sweep of Albion in the Section VI Class B championship. 

Eden (30-5-4) had little trouble with the combination of schools fielding a team together for the first time. The 25-14, 25-12, 25-14 win over the Timberwolves saw Eden trail just once after a service error that started the second set. Two points later, they were off and running to another state tournament berth.

“I think we played really well,” said sophomore Sam Burgio, who had 16 kills in the win. “We really clicked as a team.”

State champions the last five seasons, Eden got strong efforts from sophomore Alyssa Durski (eight aces) and senior Bree Tutuska (four blocks) on Thursday.

“I was very pleased with the way we moved tonight,” Eden coach Stephen Pierce said. “I thought they seemed energized and more relaxed than we were Monday night.”

Catt-Little Valley/Ellicottville (18-5) was simply overmatched by the Eden offense.

“They controlled play right from the start,” Timberwolves coach Joe Crandall said. “They beat us. Flat out.”

After defeating Starpoint in the B-1 final on Saturday, the Billies cruised in the overall B final, winning 25-8, 25-16, 25-14, to clinch their first ever sectional title in girls volleyball. The Billies dominated from the start, with their “big three” of seniors Madison Clark, Jessica Miller and junior Melissa Postek hitting big against the Eagles defense. 

“That was our plan: to pass well enough that we can run three options every time,” Williamsville South coach Tom Sproull said. “And they did.”

Clark had 13 kills and 18 assists to lead the Billies (16-5) on the outside while Miller had 10 kills, 19 digs and two blocks hitting from both sides of the floor.

Postek had 10 kills and 17 digs for the Billies, who won it all in their first year as a Class B school.

Williamsville South’s dominant display on offense gave Albion little chance to gain momentum and mount a consistent offensive attack. 

“They were hitting more,” Albion coach Ann Capacci said. “It’s a very simple game: Whoever hits the ball onto the ground more first wins. 

“They were more aggressive at the net and they were actually able to turn more balls into hits, more passes into hits than we were.”

Junior Kelsee Soule had four kills, two blocks and 15 digs for Albion (19-2) in the loss, while junior Meghan Hurley added 11 assists, two kills and 11 digs for the Eagles.

Well in control, the Billies’ effort looked almost casual at times, something they said they’ll have to clean up at Saturday’s Regionals back at Lockport High School.

“I think in the second game, I think we got ahead of ourselves because the score was a lot closer,” Miller said. “I think we have a good chance of getting past regionals, but we can’t underestimate them.”

Both winners move on to play in the Far West Regionals starting at 2 p.m. Saturday. 

Boys Section VI Playoff Brackets
Buffalo News
November 6, 2014

2014 Section VI Boys Playoff Brackets

Girls Section VI Playoff Brackets
Buffalo News
November 6, 2014

2014 Section VI Girls Playoff_Brackets

Hamburg, Lancaster sweep to Sectional titles in boys volleyball 
Yerington has 25 kills to lead Bulldogs
By Mary Jo Monnin | News Sports Reporter Buffalo News
November 6, 2014

You didn’t need to see the purple streamers flying through the air and hitting the gym floor following match point to know who won Wednesday’s Section VI Division II boys volleyball title.

Hamburg, whose school colors are purple and white, was clearly the better team on this night beating Eden, 25-17, 25-19, 25-15, before an estimated 250 at Sweet Home High School.

The Bulldogs’ Zach Yerington, who will play his college volleyball next year at Ohio State, led the effort with 25 kills.

The title is the second in a row for Hamburg (18-7), which returns to action Saturday in the Far West Regionals against Victor. Eden, the No. 1 ranked team in the WNY coming off a win over Canisius, ends 25-4.

The Bulldogs knew they would have to be at their best to knock off Eden. They were. 

“We had to come out with all the energy in the world to beat them. Everything we did was what we wanted to do,” said Yerington, a 6-foot-5 outside hitter. “I think we played the best volleyball we ever played this match. That’s what we had to do. They’re a really good team, that’s why they’re ranked No. 1. I wanted this more than anything this year. I wanted this match so we can go back to regionals and get back what we lost last year.”

Hamburg was in control of the match throughout. The Bulldogs took the lead for good in the first game at 8-7. In game two, Eden managed to tie it at 18-18, but Hamburg dug deep and finished it out with a 7-1 run. The Bulldogs used a pair of 5-0 runs in game three to close it out.

Eden was forced into uncomfortable situations and appeared to play on its heels. 

“They played like returning champions. All their guys played above themselves,” said Eden coach Robert Pierce. “Zach was unstoppable. I would say in every skill they were better than us. I thought we settled down in game two, but it was unforced errors, some missed serves, nets. … That was a little bit of lack of discipline on our part. I think Hamburg was a little hungrier. They were playing forward, we were playing backwards.”

Bulldogs coach Brian Carroll got the matches he was hoping for from veterans Yerington, Ryan Dils, Doug Horbachewski and Bryan Camp. He also cited JV call-up Jon Gordner, who was playing in his first varsity match. The 6-1 sophomore had five kills.

Carroll said a big difference maker was how well his team served and the fact they were rested. He said he devoted Monday’s entire 90 minute practice to serving. “That’s all we did was work on serving and it paid off tonight,” said Carroll, who did post-match interviews while holding his 2-month old daughter Patricia. “They lost their share of matches this season because I think they were fatigued. I gave them a couple of days off, and they came out like it was the first day of the season.”

Division I

Lancaster captured its first title since 2006 with a convincing 25-14, 25-16, 25-14 win over Orchard Park. The Redskins (23-4) will represent Section VI in Saturday’s Far West Regionals at Orchard Park at 7 p.m.

Lancaster beat OP twice in ECIC play, but did so in four games after losing the first game both times. That was not the case in this one. Connor Schultz had eight blocks, Joe Mescall added seven and Tyler Witt had 26 assists.

Lancaster also got another strong match from its libero, Trevor Gabamonte. “Trevor is really solid back there for defense,” said coach Jason Stang, whose team also won ECIC I. “He really kind of settles us down and picks up a lot of balls that are tipped and has very quick reflexes.”

The Quakers end the season 14-11, but had been 7-2 since early October. Martin Hackford led OP with seven kills. Coach Matt Lexner said it was his team’s fifth loss in a row to Lancaster going back to last season.

“I knew coming in here it was going to be an uphill battle,” said Lexner. “We knew what we were up against. They played very consistent, more consistent than they were all year against us, and we couldn’t get anything going.”

email: mmonnin@buffnews.com 

Clarence, Will East break through for girls volleyball titles
By Corey Desiderio SPECIAL TO THE BUFFALO NEWS
November 6, 2014

LOCKPORT – Clarence hadn’t won a Section VI championship in girls volleyball since 1988. Williamsville East had never won a sectional title in the history of its girls volleyball program.

That’s not the case for either school anymore.

The No. 1-ranked Red Devils defeated defending Class AA champion, No. 2 Frontier, in four sets on Wednesday night in front of packed gym at Lockport High School to capture the championship. No. 2 Williamsville East swept No. 5 Sweet Home, which beat the Flames in the sectional finals in 2013, in straight sets for the Class A championship.

“I’m just the coach. They’re the champions,” Red Devils coach Mike Meyer said when asked what it meant to bring a sectional title back to Clarence. “Four years ago a bunch of those girls started and we were a 2-12 team. They worked year round, they worked in club, they worked in the offseason. They have stayed focused on getting better for the end of October and that’s been our goal since the beginning of the year.”

Clarence won by set scores of 25-23, 23-25, 25-20, 25-21. Senior Gabbi Pacatte and sophomore Meghan Neelon paced the Red Devils offensively with 18 and 17 kills, respectively. Junior Karley King had 11 kills of her own to round out Clarence’s dominant trio.

“In all honestly, it feels unreal,” Neelon said. “We won nationals this year” in club “and it feels the exact same as that. I never would have thought that we would win sectionals but we worked really hard and we did it together as a team.”

In the nightcap, Williamsville East toppled Sweet Home by set scores of 25-19, 25-22 and 25-11. Sophomore Lexi Novak had a team-high 21 kills while junior Carly Shifflet was close behind with 17.

“After winning twice last year against” Sweet Home “and losing in the sectional finals, it really drove our girls to really want to dominate every time we went out and played,” Flames coach Scott Wright said. “And they’ve been working hard all year for this, for one of our goals. We’ve never had a sectional champion and now they’re the first ones to do it.”

Clarence will take on Section V representative Penfield in the Far West Regionals at 4 p.m. Saturday at Gates-Chili High School in the Rochester area.

“We played them in a preseason tournament at St. Mary’s and they’re very good,” Meyer said. “They’ve been state champions before. They win regionals all the time, so they’re going to be a tough challenge for us.”

Williamsville East will also travel to Gates-Chili Saturday to face off with Section V winner Pittsford-Sutherland, last year’s Class A state champion, at 2 p.m. The Flames played Pittsford-Sutherland earlier in the year at the St. Mary’s of Lancaster tournament, losing two close games.

“I’ve coached for a bunch of years now and I’ve never gotten to Rochester,” Wright said. “I just hope we enjoy the ride because it’s fun to represent Western New York and try to go after the teams in Rochester.”  

Canisius beat St. Joe’s, runs title streak to 15 
St. Mary’s girls fight off Nardin in four sets
By Ryan Nagelhout SPECIAL TO THE BUFFALO NEWS
November 6, 2014

It’s starting to be referred to simply as “The Streak” around the Monsignor Martin Association.

Canisius High School won its 15th straight boys volleyball title in a 3-1 win over St. Joe’s Wednesday night in a packed St. Joe’s gym.

St. Mary’s followed that by continuing its own streak, winning its third straight girls title, 3-1, over Nardin.

For Canisius, the 21-25, 25-13, 25-17, 25-18 triumph extended a winning streak that began before the seniors on the floor entered kindergarten. 

“It just means I’m old,” said Canisius coach Tom Weislo of the streak, which started two years before he began coaching the Crusaders. “They don’t want it to end, and they always talk about not being the team that breaks the streak. So it’s motivation for them.”

The Marauders were ready to defend their home floor early, winning the first game and putting the pressure on the reigning champions. Weislo said St. Joe’s handled the crowd better than his squad in the early game.

The gym was so packed that after the first set two rows of bleachers were dragged between the two gyms for fans to stand on.

“This is an amazing atmosphere,” St. Joe’s coach Mark Anzalone said. “To be able to be a part of this in high school is absolutely outstanding.”

Canisius dominated the second set, bouncing back to win 25-13 with the help of some Marauders miscues. The Crusaders carried their strong play into the third set, a 25-17 win that put them on the brink. 

“After we tied it 1-1 I thought we really stepped up and played well,” said senior Trevor Gooch, who had 16 kills in the win. 

Canisius crept their way to 25 in the deciding set, with junior Daniel Barry leading the left side block for Canisius on the final point. The ball fell on Joe’s side to make it 15 in a row for the Crusaders (26-4).

Canisius fans stormed the court and lifted Gooch on their shoulders as he led the crowd in an ‘I believe that we have won’ chant. Gooch said that, much like winning the Monsignor Martin, storming the court has become a tradition for the Crusaders.

“I didn’t know if it was going to be me or someone else,” he said, “but I knew someone was going to get lifted up.”

Senior Anthony Berardi had 14 kills for the Marauders (12-9) while Jacob Donn added 13 kills for Joe’s, who also lost to Canisius in last year’s championship game. 

In the girls championship, St. Mary’s (42-0-1, 19-0 MMA) needed comebacks in the middle sets to win 22-25, 26-24, 27-25, 25-20 over Nardin (21-3), who pulled out the first set when St. Mary’s couldn’t return a Mary Marusza serve.

The Lancers fought off four game points in the second set and stormed back for a 26-24 win capped by a thundering Ashley Drzmala kill.

Nine straight Lancers points tied the third set at 19 before overcoming a Nardin game point with three straight points to go up 2-1. They finally pulled away in the fourth set, a Katelyn Meyer kill sealing the 25-20 win.

“It’s always worth more when you have to fight tooth and nail for it,” St. Mary’s coach Don Pieczynski said. “I’m so proud of my girls.”

Drzmala had 26 kills and 22 digs in the win for the Lancers, who host the State Catholic championships at 2 p.m. on Sunday. 

Hamburg and Eden in the boys volleyball class B final
Buffalo News
November 6, 2014

Lady Quakers’ run ends in semis 
Girls volleyball
by BRANDON KILIJANSKI Reporter Orchard Park Bee 
November 6, 2014

It was a tough go for the Orchard Park girls volleyball team in the Class AA semifinals on Oct. 30 as they traveled to Clarence.

Clarence has been the top team in Western New York all season, and they proved to be too strong for the Lady Quakers again by winning 25-9, 25-11, 25-21.

Serve and serve reception turned out to be one of the main reasons why Orchard Park struggled. The Lady Quakers had a hard time passing Clarence’s fast moving float serves.

“Our girls were there but reacting to the ball and not prepared for it,” head coach Greg Lardo said. “The girls were getting balls chipped off them and we needed to be a little quicker to the ball.”

Lardo said that he wanted Orchard Park to have a 2:1 ratio of aces to errors while his team was at the serving line. But instead, the Lady Quakers registered zero aces and had nine errors.

Orchard Park’s inability to consistently pass Clarence’s serves allowed Clarence to make many long runs in the match. That resulted in the lopsided scores of the first two sets.

“It came down to not being able to receive serve and side out in a timely fashion,” Lardo said. “They were getting six, seven, eight points in a row. We were way off trying to side out and stay with them.”

After the first two sets, Lardo told the girls a comeback was going to be difficult but not impossible.

The Lady Quakers vastly improved in the third game and even held a 13-9 lead.

“When we did settle down and do the things we worked on, we were successful,” Lardo added.

But Clarence’s fire power got them back into the game and they took a 23-21 lead. Orchard Park missed a serve on that point, and then being down 24-21 was too much to dig out of.

The good news was that Orchard Park scored more points in the third set than the first two combined.

“It was nice to see a team fight to the end and show some chara cter,” Lardo said. “A lot of teams down 2-0 would pack it in and go through the motions, but we fought hard.”

Orchard Park graduates seven seniors which include Shaye Swiatek, Olivia Jacobs, Riley Moll, Molly Hennessy, Annika Thomas, Shannon Tatay and Donnett Hickson.

“They were following a lot of good players ahead of them, but it was good to see with the zero to little varsity experience we had, finish close to .500 in the division and win a playoff game,” Lardo said.

Will South, Albion make Class B final
Buffalo News
November 5, 2014

From the very start of the season Williamsville South girls volleyball coach Tom Sproull believed he had a team capable of a special season. He was right.

The Billies won the Section VI Class B-1 title Tuesday night by winning over Starpoint, 25-17, 25-13, 25-19, at Lockport High. South will face B-2 winner Albion for the overall class title at 6 p.m. on Thursday at Lockport.

It was the third time this season that South had swept the Spartans. The first two were in ECIC II play where the Billies went 10-4. “Again we were led by our big three of Haley Muehlbauer, Madison Clark and Melissa Postek,” Sproull said. Clark is the setter when on the back line but also moves to outside hitter. Muehlbauer and Postek are outside hitters.

“This is the most talented group I’ve ever coached,” said Sproull, who is in his sixth season at South. “The girls are just playing a lot better team volleyball. The sky’s the limit because they’ve come together as a team. That and being positive leads to better results.”

No. 2 seed Albion swept Cheektowaga, 25-9, 25-19, 25-16 in the B-2 final after sweeping through the Niagara-Orleans League season with a 12-0 record. No. 4 Cheektowaga had advanced by upsetting No. 1 Depew in five sets. Kelsee Soule led the Purple Eagles with 7 kills, 11 digs, 2 aces.

Albion swept Dunkirk and East Aurora to make the final. 

Albion has had a successful run in the sport in recent years, but this year’s team is extremely young. The Purple Eagles won the N-O championship last season and advanced to the sectional semifinals.

“There’s only two starting seniors on the team,” said coach Ann Capacci. They are Sara Millspaugh and Olivia Neidert.

Blue Devils drop playoff match to Orchard Park
Boys volleyball 
by BRANDON KILIJANSKI Reporter Ken-Ton Bee
November 5, 2014

It was a tough draw for the Kenmore West boys volleyball team as they matched up against Orchard Park in the quarterfinals of the Class A playoffs on Thursday.

The fourth-seeded Quakers defeated the No. 5 seed Kenmore West in a sweep 25-9, 25-18, 25-11.

“We knew they were a good team; they’re ranked No. 5 in Western New York,” said Kenmore West head coach Ryan Hogan. “Their outside hitters are strong and they do have two middles that are both good blockers and hitters with quick attacks. Their setter was probably the best one we’ve seen all year; he put the ball spot on every time.”

The Blue Devils struggled blocking and that was one of the reasons the scores were lopsided. According to Hogan, 15 times the ball landed on the Blue Devils’ side after having a block up.

After struggling mightily in the first set, the Blue Devils regrouped and put together a more competitive second set. Then in the third, Kenmore West tied the score at 9-9 but then wound up losing 16 of the next 18 points, which finished the match.

“They had a great run at the end, and with their experienced team, that was too much,” Hogan said. “They hit the ball well all over the court and didn’t make many mistakes or errors.”

Even though his team lost in a sweep, Hogan said it was still one of the best matches Kenmore West played all season. The Blue Devils struggled all year with making too many errors, but against Orchard Park their total number of errors decreased quite a bit.

“We had three great practices in a row and the kids went into that match believing they were going to win,” Hogan added. “Our kids fought through it and played hard until the last point.”

Kenmore West will be graduating five seniors, including Nick Atallah, Dave Blumberg, Joe Gardon, Tom Massey and Tyler Steubechen.

Atallah finished with a team-high 14 digs in the match and was selected as a Niagara Frontier League Third Team All-Star. Hogan said that he finished his career with the best match he played all season.

“This senior class did an excellent job with leadership skills,” Hogan said. “We had five kids on the team that never played before, and those younger guys learned a lot from the seniors. The leadership from them is going to help our program for the next two years. The younger guys saw the work habits from our seniors this year and hopefully they’ll continue that same habit.” 

email: brandonk@beenews.com

Western New York 2014 Boys Top 10 Poll - 11/4/14
Buffalo News
Tuesday, November 4, 2014

Western New York 2014 Girls Top 10 Poll - 11/4/14
Buffalo News
Tuesday, November 4, 2014

Section VI cites Hall of Famers
Buffalo News
November 4, 2014

Six coaches, an administrator and two former athletes comprise the inaugural class of the Section VI Hall of Fame that will be inducted Friday at the Van Miller Club in Ralph Wilson Stadium. The dinner will be at 6 p.m. with ceremonies to follow.

The class includes: the late Bob Barrows, Orchard Park baseball coach; Dr. Ron Black, Akron administrator; Jaqueline Brummer, Sweet Home gymnast; the late Drake Francescone, Buffalo City Schools coach; Daryl Johnston, Lew-Port football; Sally Kus, Sweet Home volleyball coach; Edward Leibinger, Tonawanda swim coach/official; the late Gene Masters, Grand Island football/baseball coach; and Dr. Stacey Schroeder-Watts, Grand Island track and field. 

It’s a Canisius-Joe’s final in volleyball
Buffalo News
November 4, 2014

That late season loss to Eden in a nonleague match was a tonic that helped No. 1 ranked Canisius get ready for the Monsignor Martin boys volleyball playoffs. Back on their game, the Crusaders advanced to the finals with a 25-3, 25-13, 25-10 win Monday night over St. Mary’s of Lancaster at St. Joe’s.

The four-set loss to Eden “most definitely did help. We had a good week of practice after that, and we’re excited to be playing for the championship,” Canisius coach Tom Weislo said. “We hit .680 as a team tonight. For sure, we were very efficient.”

Griffin Schmit had nine kills and Trevor Gooch had eight in Monday’s win. Setter Charles Desmond had 28 assists.

Canisius will face host St. Joe’s, which swept St. Francis in the other semifinal, 25-15, 25-9 and 25-17, as senior hitter Anthony Berardi had 10 kills.

“It’s always a challenge playing there,” Weislo said of playing for the championship on St. Joe’s home court. “There’s always an amazing atmosphere.”

Missing star Leah Meyer, who suffered stretched ankle ligaments last week, St. Mary’s advanced to the Monsignor Martin girls finals by defeating Sacred Heart, 25-11, 25-15 and 25-12, on the Lancers’ home court. 

“We’re thriving, not surviving,” without Meyer, St. Mary’s coach Don Pieczynski said. “We don’t have Leah Meyer, but nobody else does either. We’re playing pretty well without her.”

Ashley Drzymala led the Lancers with 16 kills and Bailey Dolegowski had 27 assists.

St. Mary’s will face No. 2 seed Nardin for the championship at St. Joe’s at 8 p.m. on Wednesday after the 6 p.m. boys championship match.

Section VI volleyball

Eden rebounded from a first set loss and defeated Southwestern, 24-26, 25-9, 25-23, 25-22, to win the Class C-1 title and earn a place in the overall sectional Class C championship game against C-2 champion Cattaraugus/Little Valley or Falconer. Winner of the last five state Class C championships, the Raiders got a good test from the Trojans.

“I was not really surprised,” said Eden coach Stephen Pierce. “Southwestern has a very veteran team, mostly seniors. … We started out very tight. We were moving well and a lot of balls were dropping.”

Pierce gave a lot of credit to setter Alyssa Durski. “She stayed calm, getting the ball to the right hitters to kind of help us get through it,” Pierce said.

Sam Burgio had 19 kills and three aces while Kailey Ballou (14 kills) and Meghan Ballou (nine kills, three blocks) also stood out. 

Falcons to defend Section VI title against Clarence
By: Marquel Slaughter | Sports Hamburg Sun
Tuesday November 4, 2014

There was no telling how good the Frontier girls volleyball team could be this fall as it saw plenty of seniors from last year’s squad, which captured the program’s first sectional championship since 2010, walk across the stage this past June.

The Falcons saw athletes like All-WNY first team selection Syd Rojak, who is now playing the sport at Division I Marist, leave the team to a new crop of seniors and plenty of youth to fill new roles and defend their sectional title.

Edging out some wins too close for comfort and falling in other winnable games early on aided the team’s thoughts on how good it could be. And then there was a disappointing loss to Clarence that put the talents of this year’s roster to the test.

The Falcons played Clarence twice, losing both contests. But it was the first meeting that went to five games. Clarence came out victorious, but only by two points.

Frontier has had its head held high ever since.

“The first time we played Clarence, we went there and played them to five games and lost by two,” said senior co-captain Taylor Kaznowski. “That’s when I really felt like we could be good this year and we could beat any team. We went to five with them and even though they won, we still could’ve won and it was so close.”

It was a true barometer game for the Lady Falcons, for if they want to repeat as sectional champions, they will have to meet up with Clarence one more time.

Second-seeded Frontier and top-seeded Clarence both advanced to the Section VI Class AA final, which was played on Nov. 5 at Lockport High School.

Information about the contest was not available at press time. However, the coaching staff at Frontier should be very confident in its team’s chances to repeat as the sectional champion after watching the Falcons perform in the first meeting against the top-seeded AA team.

“I think that was a big turning point,” said Frontier coach Debby Schruefer, who is joined by Mark Scudder and Rick Mihalik on the coaching staff. “I think that’s when the kids really began building confidence in themselves that they can play. They played outstanding floor defense, good ball control, played well together as a team and didn’t give up.”

The Falcons would go on to lose in the second regular-season meeting against Clarence later in the year, but after taking the Red Devils to five games on their home court, it will be interesting to see how the two teams fare on a neutral site.

“The game went back and forth, back and forth,” said Schruefer. “We were on their turf, so I was very pleased with the way they played. They put it all together. When they’re firing on all cylinders, good things happen.”

Frontier finished the regular season with a 10-4 mark overall and a 9-3 record in ECIC I despite the loss in talent and leadership to graduation. Two of those league losses came at the hands of Clarence and the third was to Williamsville North.

“We lost so many seniors, but I was surprised in a good way because we came out 9-3 and that’s the same record as last year,” Kaznowski noted.

Frontier played in Lockport, home of the Lions, for the finals. The Falcons defeated the Lions in straight sets in the Class AA semifinals on Oct. 30 to advance to the title game.

Kaznowski recorded 23 assists in the victory while her co-captain, McKyla Brooks, could not be tamed on either side of the ball, as the returning All-WNY first team selection and Stony Brook commit put up 16 kills and five blocks.

Schruefer’s crew is getting healthy at the right time with the reemergence of senior Angela Michels on the front line.

Alyssa Buck, Olivia Nappo and Jackie Dufresne join Kaznowski, Brooks and Michels as this year’s group of senior leaders. Rylee Kryszal, Renee Bartosz and Cami Duggan will be expected to play important roles as the team’s defensive specialists.

MacKenzie Karwas, Emma Booth and Kirstie Hall will be key alongside Jensen Lee and Sam Murray at the hitter spots if the Falcons want to win back-to-back Section VI championships.

“We had struggles and our lineup keeps on changing,” Kaznowski noted. “Angela Michels…she’s a senior and a big blocker. She was out like half the season with an injury so when she came back she’s been a good blocker for us. But overall we’ve had a good season. Can’t really complain.”

Eden comes back, claims 16th straight Section VI crown
By: Marquel Slaughter | Sports Hamburg Sun
Monday November 3, 2014

The quest to add more postseason plaques to the collection at Eden High School began a little shakier than the girls volleyball team had anticipated during the sectional finals.

A younger Lady Raider team took the stage at Lockport High School against a veteran Southwestern team that Eden met in the Class C finals just 12 months ago in a match in which the Lady Raiders defeated the Amanda Krakowiak-coached team in straight sets after enduring some trouble in Game 1 and trailing early on in the third set.

Fifth-seeded Southwestern found a way to be even more competitive in the 2014 final against the third-seeded Raiders, winning the opening set and having leads late in Game 3 and Game 4, but the state powerhouse was too much in the end.

Eden overcame its youth and its foe’s athleticism and veteran leadership on its way to capturing a 16th consecutive sectional championship, defeating Southwestern, 3-1, to claim the 2014 Section VI Class C1 championship on Nov. 3.

“Southwestern is a very athletic team. They pretty much have their entire starting lineup back, not just from last year, but the last two years,” said Eden head coach Stephen Pierce. “We played them in the finals last year and were able to handle them pretty well but I knew they had a lot of seniors coming back, so any team that has that many with each other from club and high school, they know how to score points.”

Eden is scheduled to play C2 champion and top seed Cattaraugus/Little Valley/Ellicottville on Nov. 6 back at Lockport for the overall Class C title and a spot in the Far West Regionals, which will take place at Gates-Chili on Nov. 8 for a trip to the state tournament.

“The main thing at this point is fine tuning and getting them to relax and play confident,” said Pierce, whose team has been the No. 2 small school on the WNY Coaches Poll all season. “I don’t think I’m stepping out of bounds to say that I think we’re the top C team here, but if you’re not playing confidently and strong, anybody that is pretty good can really go after you.”

Pierce and the Raiders have won the last five state titles as members of Class B and Class C. The 11 state championships form a number unmatched by any other sports team in New York.

Sophomore Sam Burgio, who plays under Pierce on the NFVB 15-1 team that became the first travel club team from New York State to win a national title this summer, led the Raiders with 19 kills and three aces while senior co-captain Kailey Ballou added 14 in the victory.

Junior Meghan Ballou recorded nine kills and three blocks.

After not dropping a single game in sectional play or the state tournament during last year’s title run, the road for a sixth NYSPHSAA plaque began with 24-26 loss to Southwestern in the opening set of the C1 finals.

The Raiders were down much of Game 1 before taking a short-lived 24-23 lead but could not hold on, falling to Southwestern, 26-24.

Eden returned back to form and won the second set with a convincing 25-9 victory as senior co-captain Bri Tutuska scored the match point.

The third set went to Eden in a competitive 25-23 game in which Southwestern had a 22-21 advantage before captain Ballou ended the set.

“Right after the first game…we knew that’s not how Eden plays,” Kailey Ballou noted. “We come in strong and we come in focused and that’s not what we did the first game. We just stepped it up from there and it was our time.”

Game 4 was not any different as the match continued to stay competitive. Southwestern held an 18-16 advantage and tied it at 20-20 before the Raiders took the lead for good. Eden let a ball fly out of play for its 24th point and sophomore Alyssa Durski set up Burgio for the match point after senior Claire Czjaka kept the ball alive with a dig.

With Carley Nasca joining Czjaka, Tutuska and Kailey Ballou as the seniors, and sophomore Molly Breier on the floor as the libero, Pierce’s roster is filled with young talent in juniors Carly DiNardo, Angela Cala and Sara Hooper while freshman Sam Logan and eighth grader Peyton Basinski are also integral parts of Eden’s success.

“The big problem was we’re walking into these playoffs with serious youth and I could see very early on where we call cement shoes,” said Pierce, who broke the NYS record for wins earlier this fall. “There were a lot of tips and rolls and balls literally rolling right past kids and the only thing that moved was their heads to turn and drop to the floor. That happened a lot. Not a lot of adjustments to make for that, you just have to somehow get the kids to stop feeling that inner-panic and just relax and stop playing.”

Pierce believes that his team has defeated the toughest C team it will see in the local bracket in Southwestern and hopes the Raiders will use their familiarity with Cattaraugus, which they played in a tournament earlier this fall, to capture the overall Class C crown and advance to regionals.

Maybe the opening set loss to Southwestern was a good thing for Eden as the Raiders look to learn from their mistakes and continue to compete on a high level the rest of the way.

“The turning point would be when we lost. We were all really upset and we were like, ‘Wow, we have to play harder,’” said Burgio. “We wanted to not only play for ourselves, but we wanted to play for Stephen, our fans and show everybody what Eden is made of.

“Our goal is to go to states and that’s it every year,” she continued. “We want to show everybody that we deserve to go that far.”

AVCA Division I Coaches Week #10 Poll: November 3, 2014
Womans Volleyball
AVCA.org
November 3, 2014

Others receiving votes and listed on two or more ballots: Texas A&M 34; UCF 22; Hawai'i 19; Santa Clara 16; Oregon State 14; Alabama 8; Ohio 6; Western Kentucky 6; Creighton 5; Marquette 2 

Six teams mentioned on only one ballot for a total of 28 combined points. 

Dropped Out: Texas A&M 23 

Next Poll: November 10, 2014

AVCA Division II Coaches Top 25 Week #9 Poll: November 3, 2014
Womans Volleyball
AVCA.org
November 3, 2014

Others Receiving Votes and listed on two or more ballots: Rockhurst 68; Central Washington 61; Central Oklahoma 47; Sonoma State 41; West Florida 26; Winona State 22; Dixie State-Utah 15; Missouri Western 15; Regis 13; Fresno Pacific 11; Augustana (SD) 10; Northern State 10; Point Loma 10; Findlay 9; Indianapolis 7;

4 teams mentioned on only one ballot for a total of 29 combined points. 

Dropped Out: 

Next Poll: November 10, 2014

Orchard Park volleyball upsets Lockport
Buffalo News
November 2, 2014

Orchard Park continued its late-season tear in boys volleyball Saturday by topping No. 1 seed and defending champion Lockport in the semifinals of the Section VI Division I playoffs.

It was a well-earned decision for the Quakers who lost the first two sets, then rallied to win in five over the Lions, 21-25, 23-25, 25-16, 25-22 and 25-18. 

Jason Manley led Orchard Park with 20 kills and three service aces. Spencer Eagleton had 53 assists in the grueling match for OP.

The No. 4 seed, Orchard Park will face No. 2 Lancaster in the title game at 8 p.m. on Wednesday at Sweet Home. Jay Baumann and Kenny Rudz had 16 kills each for Lancaster as the Redskins advanced by defeating No. 3 Clarence in four sets.

In Division II, Eden dropped the second set to Grand Island but rose up and took care of the Vikings in four, 25-19, 22-25, 25-17 and 25-21. Hayden Herc was strong at the net for the Raiders with 13 kills and eight blocks. Shane Smith had 15 kills and seven blocks.

Eden will face Hamburg in the Division II championship game at 6 p.m. on Wednesday at Sweet Home.

Girls volleyball

St. Mary’s of Lancaster survived its first match of the Monsignor Martin Assn. playoffs without star Leah Meyer, sweeping Nichols in three sets, 25-7, 25-3 and 25-23, with Ashley Drzymsls recording 14 kills and Bailey Dolegowski getting 21 assists. The Lancers will face Immaculata or Sacred Heart in the semifinals on Monday at St. Mary’s.

No. 2 Eden dethrones No. 1 Canisius in season finale
By: Marquel Slaughter | Sports Hamburg Sun
Friday October 31, 2014

It was the match that Eden had been waiting for all season.

The non-league regular-season finale between the top two boys volleyball programs in Western New York featured No. 1 Canisius at No. 2 Eden as both programs have been neck-and-neck in the WNY Coaches Poll and in tournaments all season long.

Canisius got the best of Eden in both of the previous meetings at the Clarence Tournament and Eden’s own invitational, but the Raiders remained confident that they were truly the better team when it came time for a full length match on Oct. 27.

Their assertiveness came to fruition in a match that ended after four sets with Eden coming out on top, capturing a come-from-behind victory after dropping the first game and overcoming a deficit in the last set to defeat Canisius, 18-25, 25-23, 25-16, 25-23.

“The confidence came from my seniors,” Eden head coach Robert Pierce said of seniors Hayden Herc, Shane Smith, Cole Overhoff and Jake Schlegel on their importance to the team’s Senior Night victory, “… Our seniors really played among themselves and took it to the next level.”

The triumph should almost certainly flip-flop Eden and Canisius in the next WNY Coaches Poll, granting the second-ranked Raiders the No. 1 spot after downing top-ranked Canisius, No. 4 Hamburg and No. 6 Orchard Park in the final weeks of the season while capturing tournament titles at Lockport and Orchard Park, as well.

“They’ve been talking a lot about how they’re going to beat us on our home court and we personally took that to heart and wanted to make this our Senior Night and get a really big crowd,” said Herc. “Play our best volleyball and show everyone we’re the real No. 1 team and that public schools can still beat private schools.”

Junior Declan Pierce had 19 kills and 17 digs in the win while Calvin Nowicki set up the offense with 59 assists.

Herc held down the middle with 17 kills and six blocks for Eden. Smith added 13 kills and nine blocks.

“We’ve just been playing better and better as the season went on,” Smith said.

Eden fell in the first set before stepping up and taking a tight Game 2 to tie the match at one game apiece.

Game 3 was all Raiders, but head coach Tom Weislo and his Canisius team jumped out early on the hosts in what was a must-win Game 4 for the Crusaders.

Canisius was up 22-17 and controlled a match that seemed certain to head to a fifth winner-take-all set, but Eden put on an 8-1 run to end the match.

“Tonight was a game of matchups,” coach Pierce said. “We started out the way we normally do and then we lost to them four out of five sets that way. So I flipped it so I had a different match, won the next two.

“Then he did the same thing and in Game 4 he had the matchup that he wanted and we were down six…but my seniors said, ‘I don’t think so. We’re going to take this right now.’”

The run was powered by Smith up front with a combination of blocks and tips that helped Eden slowly creep back into the set.

Schlegel’s block pulled Eden to within one and Smith followed with a block of his own to tie the game, 23-23.

“Jacob was a physical force,” Pierce said. “He wasn’t getting us blocks tonight but I told him he was going to get us a big one. And he got it right at the end and really got in the head of their outside hitter.

“Cole, his role was minimalized, but he was instrumental in this win,” coach added. “It’s the little things, the little digs and rallies that kept us going.”

Canisius saw strong performances from juniors Charlie Desmond and Andrew Schake but was unable to take the success it had over Eden in recent tournaments into a regular season match.

“They’re a terrific team and they played particularly well today,” said Canisius head coach Tom Weislo, who has led Canisius to 11 consecutive MMA titles. “Our guys, this was an important game but really for us another game on the schedule. Would we have liked to have won? Yes, but our eye is on the playoff prize. Hats off and kudos to Eden. They played terrific and we weren’t as good as we have been tonight.”

The Raiders ended the regular season with a 22-3 overall record after defeating Canisius and a 12-0 mark in ECIC III to take the division crown and earn the No. 1 seed in the Class B postseason.

“What a great show of high-level volleyball from both teams,” said coach Pierce. “I would honestly say if we played that team again, they might beat us. There is no guarantees when you play against a team that is that well-coached and so balanced.”

Eden was scheduled to open the postseason at home on Oct. 28 against Niagara-Wheatfield and, if the Raiders win, will host a second-round playoff game on Oct. 30. The team is looking to avenge an early exit in 2013 and make a run at the NYS crown.

“We’ve just been getting stronger and practicing harder and we want to show everyone that we’re going to make a real run at the state title this year,” said Herc.

High school roundup (Oct. 31)
Buffalo News
October 31, 2014

Boys volleyball 

In Class A, Andy Fellner had five aces in Lancaster’s quarterfinal sweep of Niagara Falls. Next up is No. 3 Clarence, which won in three sets over Frontier. Matt Dempsey had 28 assists for the Red Devils. Orchard Park downed Kenmore West in three sets.

In Class B competition, Declan Pierce had 13 kills as No. 1 Eden defeated North Tonawanda in three sets. Grand Island and Hamburg also won quarterfinal matchups.

Girls volleyball

Meghan Neelon had 13 kills and Gabbi Pacatti added 14 digs as top-seeded Class AA Clarence won three straight sets from No. 5 Orchard Park.

In other sectional action:

Class A: Sweet Home defeated North Tonawanda while Williamsville East topped Williamsville North – both in four sets – to advance to the sectional final.

Class B-1: Williamsville South, the top seed, cruised to a three-set semifinal win over Iroquois. Next is Starpoint, 3-2 winners over Lake Shore.

Class B-2: Kelsee Soule had 13 kills and nine digs for No. 2 Albion’s three-set semifinal win over East Aurora, while Cheektowaga – led by Kelley Martin’s 12 kills – edged Depew in five.

Lake Shore boys volleyball beats Sweet Home in pre-quarterfinals
By: Marquel Slaughter | Sports Hamburg Sun
Wednesday October 29, 2014

Lake Shore, the No. 5 seed in the boys volleyball Division II bracket, opened the postseason by defeating visiting No. 12 Sweet Home in four sets on Oct. 28 in the prequarterfinals.

The Eagles will visit No. 4 Grand Island in the quarterfinals on Oct. 30.

Lake Shore was led by Devin Joslyn (15 kills, 3 aces), Mike Roach (10 kills) and Ty Becker (7 kills), who kept the team together after Sweet Home tied the match at one game apiece.

"In the first round of sectionals, sometimes nerves come into play," said Lake Shore head coach John Coyle. "Fortunately Devin started getting it rolling with his serves...and kind of got the momentum back in our favor."

Read the Nov. 6 edition of The Sun for the full story and an update on the Eagles' playoff run.

West Seneca West’s girls volleyball team pushed its winning streak to four matches Friday by earning its first postseason victory since 2008.

The 11th-seeded Lady Indians, who entered the Class B bracket having defeated West Seneca East, Nichols and City Honors to close out their regular season, topped sixth-seeded Hutch Tech in its prequarterfinal, 25-22, 25-16, 25-19. Amanda Doster had nine kills to pace the squad, while Lynn Cleversley served up six aces. Abby Hoestermann added five aces for West.

“I kept telling the girls that they only needed one season-defining moment to turn things around, and in our first pretty close set with City Honors, we pushed ahead in the end and were able to close out the set,” coach Matt Todaro said. “That’s when I could see that the light bulb went off and we went on to control the next two sets to win the match, 3-0. Going into the playoff match with Hutch Tech on Friday, the girls knew they could do something special and they didn’t disappoint. We’ve been playing with the passion you need to be successful and we aren’t about to let anybody get in our way.”

West returned to action Tuesday against third-seeded Williamsville North, but information about that contest was not available at press time.

Whichever team comes out of that match victoriously will advance to face the winner of the Williamsville East-Niagara Wheatfield quarterfinal in Thursday’s semifinal round. 

Schweickelt, Kaempf grow as leaders
By: Marquel Slaughter | Sports Hamburg Sun
Wednesday October 29, 2014

As a sophomore, Brandon Schweickelt found himself playing a key role alongside some veterans on a St. Francis volleyball team with high hopes. Unfortunately for Schweickelt and Frannies, he was unable to meet the standards for student-athletes at St. Francis and missed the conclusion of the 2013 season.

Devastated by the news, he took the games he missed as motivation to get up on the right foot and become a model student first and athlete second, and according to his head coach, the changes are paying dividends for both Schweickelt and the Red Raiders.

“Brandon had some trouble in the classroom last year but he’s got his head on straight now. That was a real eye-opening experience for him,” said St. Francis head coach Andrew Lanigan. “I think it affected him a little bit. We had a good heart-to-heart in the classroom.”

Lanigan said that Scheickelt made a promise to stay committed in the classroom and has more than redeemed himself this season.

“He’s ready to work this year,” said Lanigan. “He came in and said, ‘Coach, there’s not going to be any issues this year. We’re going to be proactive instead of reactive this year.’”

Schweickelt is a junior co-captain alongside classmate Jake Kaempf. They lead a Red Raider team that garnered the third seed in the Monsignor Martin Athletic Association postseason and will have a first round bye.

“It’s just a great group of guys,” said Kaempf. “We’re more of a team. We bond a lot, kind of like a brotherhood.”

The pair found themselves under the wings of seniors Tom Duskwitz and Jack Marretti in 2013. They consider the graduates mentors that have helped them get ready for their roles as co-captains this season.

“Last year the two captains were mentors to us because we kind of knew we’d be captains this year,” said Schweickelt.

“We learned a lot from them, watching how they played and imitate what they did,” added Kaempf.

Like Schweickelt, Kaempf is in his third varsity season. Also like his co-captain, he missed a chunk of games earlier in his career. Kaempf missed the end of his freshman campaign due to a broken arm. But he was able to recover and bounce back to help the Raiders on the volleyball court.

“Jake stepped in and was our libero right away,” said Lanigan. “He broke his arm at the end of freshman year right before playoff which kind of put a wrench in our plans. He’s grown into being a leader for us on and off the court. He’s essentially the face of the program here because everybody knows him.”

That brotherhood Kaempf described between each and every one of the Raiders shows on and off of the court, specifically on the defensive side.

“We’re more defensive-minded,” said Schweikelt. “We play tough defense and get kills when we need them.”

Kaempf plays a huge role in their defensive scheme. His teammates rely on him for signals and play calls.

Schweickelt also presents some defensive prowess. He has evolved into a better-rounded player overtime.

“With Brandon, he’s more of a versatile player for us,” Lanigan noted. “He played D specialist that first year, put him on the right for a little bit because he can swing. He set for us, so he’s been all over the place.

“They’re both three-year varsity players. A lot of these guys look up to them. They really are success stories. They both play hockey. And it just shows that you can excel at both sports and inside the classroom.”

No. 3 St. Francis is scheduled to play at No. 2 St. Joe’s in the MMAA semifinals on Nov. 3. Whichever team wins will play the winner of top-seeded Canisius – the No. 1 boys volleyball team in the WNY Coaches Poll — against Cardinal O’Hara/St. Mary’s for the MMAA title.

South boys volleyball defeats East for ECIC II title
by PATRICK J. NAGY Reporter Amherst Bee
October 28, 2014

Williamsville South’s boys volleyball team downed Williamsville East, 26-24, 25-18, 26-24, on Tuesday, Oct. 21, to repeat as ECIC Division II champions. The Billies finished 11-1. East dropped to 9-3.

“A division title was our first goal,” South coach Thom Knab said. “It helped us get a good seed for playoffs [third seed].”

Knab credited his team’s improved passing, more offensive weapons and better defense to help in the victory.

“The first game was neck and neck,” South coach Thom Knab said. “The third game we were down 23-20 and came back to win.” 

Christian Graziano (11 kills) and Ryan Nigro (10 kills) and Joe Zanelotti (36 assists, 4 aces) led the Billies. Knab said libero Braedan Gillman played a strong defensive game in the back row.

East coach Mike Braunscheidel said the first game came down to a judgment call by the official that swung momentum to South into the second game.

“We put a ball down at 24-23 for the win and we were called for a carry,” Braunscheidel said. “We were never able to regroup and it carried over in the second game.”

In the third game, Braunscheidel said South’s volleyball experience, led by Christian Graziano, was a factor.

“We didn’t have an answer with our blocking for him,” Braunscheidel said. “It was 25-25 and they went outside to him and we could not get a block to stop him.”

Despite the loss, Braunscheidel was happy with the way the team played.

“We were right there,” he said. “Williamsville South is a more established program and I hope to get there eventually.”

Braunscheidel noted the offense from Cort Williams and Dylan Cicero and tough serving from Mike Shanahan and Patrick Irving.

South came up short in defending its title at the Grand Island Tournament on Saturday, losing to Grand Island, 25-15, 23-25, 18-25, in the semifinals.

“In the second and third games, we had trouble stopping one of their big hitters,” Knab said.

South went 6-0 in pool play, beating Niagara Falls, West Seneca East and Kenmore East and then defeating Williamsville East, 25-16, and Williamsville North, 25-17, in the quarterfinals.

Zanelotti was named to the all-tournament team. He recorded 26 kills, 44 assists and 11 aces throughout the day. Other standouts for South throughout the day were: Graziano (29 kills), Gillman (24 digs); Andy Shelton (11 blocks); and Shawn Barbalato (16 blocks).

Knab also said the team’s passing was strong, which he hopes bodes well for sectionals.

South is the third seed and hosted 14th-seed West Seneca West in a Class B quarterfinal on Tuesday, but information about the match was unavailable before press time.

East rebounded two days later with a four-game win over Cheektowaga, 25-22, 25-13, 25-27, 25-14, concluding the regular season at 12-6 overall.

At the Grand Island Tournament, East went 5-1 in pool play, beating Kenmore West and East Aurora and splitting games with North Tonawanda. In the quarterfinals, East lost to Williamsville South, 16-25, and beat Williamsville North, 25-17, to advance into the semifinals where they lost to North Tonawanda, 21-25, 26-28.

Williams did not play, which forced Braunscheidel to move Shanahan from outside hitter to middle blocker and Jake Weissert in at outside hitter.

Cicero was named to the all-tournament team for his stellar back row defensive play and unselfishness in the front row.

East, seeded seventh in the Class B Tournament, hosted 10th seeded Depew in the prequarterfinals on Tuesday, but information about the match was unavailable before press time.

The winner faces Hamburg or West Seneca East or Williamsville North on Thursday.