Mainland team makes playoffs and gets home game for first time
LINWOOD — In its third year of competition, the Mainland Regional High School boys volley team not only made the playoffs, but earned a home game.
Unfortunately, the No. 8 seed Mustangs had to go up against the more seasoned Absegami Braves, who won the match 3-1 in the first round of the South Jersey Group II sectionals.
The Braves (15-11) were seeded No. 9. Mainland (16-8) beat the Braves early in the season, 2-1, but lost a back-and-forth match against Absegami 3-2 in the Cape-Atlantic League tournament. That earlier score was 25-21, 22-25, 25-21, 23-25 and 10-15 for the final set.
On May 27, the Mustangs lost the first two sets, 25-16 and 25-23, but came back to win the third set 25-22. The fourth set was close, tied at 10-10, but once the Braves got a 15-14 lead, they were able to expand it a little before winning by five points, 25-20.
The boys and head coach Torie Rich were clearly disappointed after the loss.
“That was a tough one. But, you know, ’Gami came to play today,” Rich said. “They played really well. That was a really good game for them.
“We kind of knew what to expect, but, the way we chalk it up was that we’re in our third year as a program and ’Gami’s been around for a while. They’re used to these high-stakes games,” she said. “We’ve never had a playoff game before as a program. This was our first playoff game. You know, it’s a different caliber. Some of these teams that have been around for a long time, they’re used to playing these high-stakes games. Nerves can get a little bit of you there, but at the end of the day, ’Gami came to play.”
“It was hard-fought, but I wish we could have got a win there,” senior Chris Driscoll said. “It was very disappointing. The first time we went to three (games), so it’s always just been like, back and forth. We just couldn’t get a win these past two times. It’s really unfortunate. It’s just the little things.”
“I wanted to try my best to bring us out on top, but things don’t work out,” senior Matt Velasquez said. “You know, I’d like to thank God for the opportunity and to be on the court one last time.”
Velasquez just returned after suffering a collapsed lung.
“I had surgery a couple weeks ago and I was trying to get back and fit because I want to be here for my team, for my family,” he said.
“I’m very proud of the boys,” Velasquez said. “I never played volleyball competitively besides high school. I play soccer, so leadership came (to me). I’m trying to keep everyone together as a family and hype everyone up.”
“I think we did a good job (this season),” senior Dylan Cramer said. “I think we could have used a little bit more work all around. Our service was a little rough. Their toppers kind of got the best of us in the end, but we gave it our best shot. I feel like we kept trying our best.”
Overall, the coach and seniors are bullish on the team’s prospects and how they’ve done in three short seasons.
“The team likes to give a lot of resources for outside play so a lot of our players develop a lot in the offseason and then in season with just the crazy amount of volume,” Driscoll said. “It’s definitely doing a great job building players. I feel like next year we’ll have a good roster. We’re losing four seniors (starters), but honestly, I feel like we’ll be fine. We have a lot of talent.”
“The program’s looking good. We’ve got a couple of good freshmen coming along,” Cramer said, while noting that some of the other starters who will be returning.
“We need a setter, though. That’s what we’re looking for. My position’s gone and we don’t have a replacement yet,” he added.
“What I just told the boys was you’ve got to be proud of having a winning record this season,” Rich said. “You’ve got to be proud to have a home playoff match, to even make the playoffs this year and then have a home match. That’s a big accomplishment within itself.
“Just be proud of what you’ve built. Some of these seniors started with us in the beginning. Be proud of the legacy you’ve left behind.”
The coach knows she has some shoes to fill next season, some bigger than others.
“We’re left without a setter next year,” she said about the graduation of Cramer. “That’s going to be something we’ve got to look for in the future. Chris Driscoll our outside hitter is a huge loss. David O’Donnell in the middle, another huge loss.”
“Matthew Velasquez didn’t play all season. He was out with the collapsed lung, but as he showed you today, his blocks are fantastic,” Rich said.
“We always are thinking about next season. We have some big losses, but we also have a lot of kids right behind them that are ready to step in,” she said. “We’ve got the Compton twins (Noah and Jude.) Noah’s unstoppable. Noah’s a beast. We’ve got John D’Agostino coming back. We’ve got our libero, Jayden Velasquez. We have some good players. As soon as we figure out our setter situation, I wouldn’t be surprised if we’re right back in the same spot next year,” Rich said.
Sectional game, stats
Against Absegami, junior Noah Compton and senior Chris Driscoll led the team in kills with 17 and 16, respectively, with Driscoll leading in digs 14-8. Senior teammate Dylan Cramer, the team’s setter, had 40 assists and 14 digs.
Over the course of the season, Compton had 249 kills to Driscoll’s 243 and edged him in aces 27-26. Driscoll had 151 digs to Compton’s 110. Cramer led his team with 562 assists to go with 130 digs and 16 aces.
Senior David O’Donnell had 80 kills, 68 digs, 22 kills and 16 service points. Jude Compton contributed 53 kills, 63 digs and 20 service points (14 aces) and John D’Agostino, a junior, had 36 kills, 80 digs, 31 assists and 26 aces.
Senior Matt Velasquez, who only played 15 sets after being out with a collapsed lung for most of the season, had 23 kills, 22 digs and six aces.
– STORY and PHOTOS by DAVID NAHAN/Sentinel staff
