• Current News Stories
• 2009 News Archive
• 2008 News Archive
• 2007 News Archive

• Longmeadow opens 4-0 again (9/18/2007)
• Volleyball is in it to win it!(10/12/2007)
• Volleyball Showcase spotlight on WMass (10/12/2007)
• Lancers pull off big comeback (10/20/2007)
• Lancers end on high note (10/30/2007)
• Lancers drive to final (11/09/2007)
• Longmeadow bests Amherst (11/11/2007)
• Longmeadow fails to advance (11/14/2007)

By JASON REMILLARD
jremillard@repub.com

Starting the season 4-0 is nothing new to the Longmeadow High School volleyball team.

The Lancers won their first four matches last season and are at it again this season after yesterday's grueling 25-14, 24-26, 25-22, 23-25, 15-11 victory over visiting Science and Technology.

First-year coach George Mulry hopes his team can carry this momentum further than the 2006 squad did. Longmeadow lost four of its next five matches after that 4-0 start.

"They had a similar start last year, but they ran out of steam," said Mulry, who was formerly the junior varsity coach at Holyoke. "Hopefully, we can just stick with it this time."

Christina Mentor led the Lancers (4-0 Eastern Division) with 11 kills. Alissa Danalis served six aces and dished out 18 assists, while Caroline Martin posted five kills.

The Cybercats (1-4, 1-4) were led by Maiah Moore-Lott, who recorded five digs and six assists. Sendy Nguyen and Breana Allen added two kills apiece.

back to top

By BECCA GEORGE
The Jet Jotter

The girls' varsity volleyball team is in it to win it. This year, the team's record is 12-1! Sarah Janes comments, "The record definitely shows that we're the team to beat."

With new success comes a new coach, George Mulry. For the last seven seasons Mulry was both the boys' and girls' volleyball coach for Holyoke High School. He is not surprised the team is doing well because he had known most of the girls before becoming coach. Mulry is very pleased with the team, "I had high hopes from the beginning."

Most of the players worked on their skill in programs during the off season which certainly paid off. Mulry believes, "They have a quiet confidence." Janes comments that the team is different this year because there is a new coach and no star player. Instead, the team works together, "we're very team-oriented." Janes and teammate Andrea Davis were surprised at the team's success. Davis says, " This is the best our team has ever done by a long shot but George is a great coach."

On the team's first practice, Mulry asked the players to look around the gym for the volleyball championship banner. The girls didn't need to look around because unfortunately, there wasn't one.

There are still areas the players need to work on. Janes says the team tends to get down on each other and is trying to learn to keep each other's spirits up. Davis believes it's lack of communication that makes the team weaker. Mulry says, "We never really put team's away. We have a lot of unforced errors."

Many other teams challenged to play against LHS varsity, including Frontier Regional High School, the team they previously lost to. Agawam, Amherst and East Longmeadow all gave the team difficulty. The players work extra hard in the off season and are competitive, according to Mulry. Janes adds that East Longmeadow is a big rivalry and "No one wants to lose against their friends." Davis is sure the team will keep winning next year. There's a lot of strong juniors and the majority of the starting line-up are juniors. Mulry believes the team has a strong foundation that will help them win upcoming games. Davis says they have a lot of heart this year and also adds, "It's just a lot more fun, everyone wants to be there, no one has a negative attitude."

back to top

By JASON REMILLARD
jremillard@repub.com

For all the attention given to the powerhouses from Rhode Island and New York that will be there, the real stars of this weekend's Volleyball Hall of Fame Showcase of Champions will be the teams from Western Massachusetts.

Nine of the 25 teams that will compete tonight through Sunday at Holyoke Community College are from this area. They represent all the stages of the sport's growth on the high school level.

"I think volleyball in Western Mass. has gotten better and better and certainly has grown in the last 10 years," said Kacey Schmitt, whose Amherst Regional team faces Frontier Regional in tonight's featured match. "I think the amount of teams has at least doubled since then, and the level of play has definitely risen."

As fans will see this weekend, high school girls volleyball in Western Massachusetts is no longer just a Franklin County thing. Mahar Regional and Turners Falls - two of the pioneering programs in the region - will be playing, but there's also pretty good action now in Hampden and Hampshire counties.

Proof positive of that is Longmeadow, which was never really a force to be reckoned with until this season. New coach George Mulry has breathed life into the Lancers, who are now atop the Eastern Division and will likely be the top seed in the Division II sectional tournament next month.

Longmeadow plays Turners Falls at 9 a.m. Sunday in what should be a very good match.

"When we first thought this up, Longmeadow was the 'why are they there' team," said Frontier coach Sean MacDonald, who put together most of the matchups. "Now, they're kind of stomping all over Western Mass."

Of course, the birthplace of volleyball is also represented. Holyoke takes on Dean Tech in tonight's opening match, which has been dubbed the "Founders' Game." Amherst and Frontier follow in a battle of the defending Western Massachusetts champions.

"We wanted the focus Friday night to be on the local teams," said tournament committee chairman Aaron Patterson, athletic director for the city of Holyoke. "We wanted to start out with that."

Amherst has surprised many by overcoming major losses to graduation and already qualifying for the Division II tournament. Frontier is Frontier, well on its way to a third straight Division III sectional title and hoping for a three-peat as state champions.

"We play Frontier every year, and we always have good matches with them," Schmitt said. "I think it's a great way to usher in the tournament."

Tomorrow's action features Mahar against Ashland at 9 a.m., Frontier versus Haldane (N.Y.) at 5 p.m. and Joseph Case of Swansea against Minnechaug at 7.

Turners and Longmeadow kick off Sunday's play at 9 a.m., followed by Agawam against Bourne at 10:45.

"Not everybody's going to win," MacDonald said. "But I hope everybody has a good time."

Tickets at the door are $6 for students and $8 for adults.

back to top

By MIKE BOGEN
mbogen@repub.com

It may or may not have been sheer coaching genius - some would say calling a timeout when you're down two games and 21-13 in the third is Coaching 101 - but last night the Longmeadow High School volleyball team certainly made their coach, George Mulry, look like a genius.

Mulry called a timeout with the Lancers trailing the visitors from just down the road in East Longmeadow, 23-25, 18-25, 13-21, and when his girls came back out to the floor, they erased that eight-point deficit, won the third game 25-23 and ran the rest of the table, 25-18 and 15-12 for a 3-2 Eastern Division victory.

"We called timeout, regrouped and came out firing on all cylinders," said Mulry, a respected veteran coach in his first season at Longmeadow. "We took the momentum from them and never looked back."

Before Longmeadow could come back, it had to fall behind, and much of that, Mulry said, was Jessie Schnepp's doing. The Spartans' junior dominated the first two games, he said, en route to a 19-kill, 12-dig, eight-ace match.

Longmeadow standout Sam Burton made her statement when the Lancers took charge. After the timeout, the senior served 10 straight points, with three of her four aces. to give Longmeadow a 23-21 lead. Burton wound up with 18 service points and 28 digs.

Christina Mentor added 10 kills and five blocks, and Natalie Zucker 20 assists, eight kills and four blocks for Longmeadow, while Courtney Johnston had nine kills, 14 digs and four aces, and Caitlin Murray 22 digs for the Spartans.

back to top

By JASON REMILLARD
jremillard@repub.com

There's a good chance that last night's regular season finale between Longmeadow and Amherst Regional was also a preview of a late-round postseason volleyball showdown.

Longmeadow capped off a 16-0 Eastern Division season with a hard-fought 25-20, 26-24, 22-25, 23-25, 15-12 win over the Hurricanes. The Lancers (18-2) will be the No.1 seed in the Western Massachusetts Division II tournament when the brackets are announced tomorrow.

Defending champion Amherst (14-4, 13-3) could be the No.2 seed for the second year in a row.

Andrea Davis led the Lancers with 13 kills and five aces. Alissa Danalis added 19 assists, while Sam Burton scooped 18 digs.

Danielle Lazarz came up big for Amherst - 23 kills, 22 digs and four aces. The Mears sisters, Heather and Jen, also contributed.

back to top

By JASON REMILLARD
jremillard@repub.com

In his first year as a head coach, George Mulry gets much of the credit for the Longmeadow High School volleyball team's tremendous success this season.

However, as the Lancers prepare for their first trip to the Western Massachusetts Division II final, Mulry pointed out that many of the building blocks were already put in place by previous coach Anna Stowell.

The new coach's job was to simply polish his team into a contender. Mission accomplished.

Andrea Davis notched 12 kills and four aces to lead Longmeadow to a 25-21, 25-12, 15-25, 25-20 victory over visiting West Springfield in a tournament semifinal last night.

Longmeadow (19-2) faces defending champion Amherst Regional (16-4) in tomorrow's championship match at 7 p.m. at Holyoke Community College.

The Hurricanes defeated Chicopee Comprehensive in last night's other semifinal.

"The girls have been putting this together for years now, working in the offseason, and it's finally paying off for them," said Mulry, who has coached the Holyoke junior varsity teams as well as a local Junior Olympics program. "I'm glad I'm here for the ride."

The Lancers figured they'd be in for a tough grind against their Eastern Division rivals, and they got what they expected early. The No.4-seed Terriers (14-7) would not go away in the first game, rallying from a 9-2 deficit to take an 11-9 lead.

The game went back and forth from there until Longmeadow pulled away late. Natalie Zucker placed a nice kill for the game point. The Lancers then cruised to an easy win in game two.

Seeing its season in jeopardy, West Side came out with purpose in game three and controlled that one as easily as Longmeadow took the second. Inna Sergeychik sealed it with a deft tip at the net.

"Our passing really got much better in that game," said first-year West Side coach Matt O'Neill.

Game four saw the Terriers carry the momentum out to a 4-2 lead before the Lancers chipped away. Longmeadow broke a 5-5 tie and didn't trail the rest of the way. West Side's Mary Kinsley gave the Lancers match point when her attack hit the net antenna.

"We had a little hiccup in game three, but it was what we were looking for," Mulry said. "Our main goal has been consistency."

Zucker recorded six kills and five aces, while libero Sam Burton led the Longmeadow defense with 18 digs.

Caroline Galiatsos paced the Terriers with 20 assists. Kinsley had seven kills and nine digs, and Kelley Dickson added five kills and five digs.

back to top

By JASON REMILLARD
jremillard@repub.com

When Longmeadow High School found itself down 20-12 in the third game of last night's Western Massachusetts Division II volleyball final, the Lancers didn't even flinch.

They'd been in this position more than once in this dream season of theirs. Most recently, Longmeadow battled back from a 21-13 deficit to defeat archrival East Longmeadow.

It wasn't easy, but the Lancers repeated the task last night, finishing off a 25-16, 25-14, 27-25 victory over Amherst Regional at Holyoke Community College.

"The first thing the assistant coach (Ken Bisulca) and I said to each other was 'familiar territory,'" first year Longmeadow coach George Mulry said. "That's been the story all season."

With their first Western Massachusetts title, the Lancers (20-2) advanced to the state semi-finals at 7pm on Tuesday at Marlborough High School. Longmeadow will take on Central Mass. champion Westboro (21-1).

Andrea Davis led the Lancers with 15 kills and four aces, while Sam Burton had 21 digs. Alissa Danalis passed out 19 assists, and Natalie Zucker contributed 9 kills and 3 blocks.

After winning the first two games fairly easily, it looked as though Longmeadow would need at least a fourth game to finish the defending champion Hurricanes. No. 3 seed Amherst (16-5) knew its season was in jeopardy and played like it.

Jenn Mears pushed a shot to the back row, which dropped right in front of Burton, for a 20-12 lead. The Hurricanes needed only five points to force a fourth game.

However, Longmeadow went on a 7-1 run to get within 21-19. Amherst pushed it back to 22-20, but soon surrendered a point for a substitution violation. The Lancers were nearly called for one themselves, and a dispute over it caused a lengthy delay while officials clarified the situation. It was deemed a scorekeeper's error, but the pause in play was enough for Longmeadow to recharge itself.

Amherst hung onto leads of 23-22, 24-23 and 25-24, but could not get that final point to win by two. Three Hurricane hitting errors led to the Lancers' victory.

"Once we get a lead, we kind of tend to relax," Longmeadow senior Sarah Janes said. "But Amherst is not going to go down without a fight."

Game one picked up right where the teams left off in their Eastern Division finale two weeks ago, a match which Longmeadow won in five games. The Lancers and Hurricanes swapped the leads several times until Longmeadow went on a 9-2 run to close it out. Five points came with Zucker serving.

The second game resembled the first, but Longmeadow was not in as much early danger. they led from 10-9 on, and game point came on a Danielle Lazarz hitting error.

"That first game was really good volleyball," Amherst coach Kacey Schmitt said. "But we were back on our heels in the second game."

Lazarz led the Hurricanes with seven kills, 11 digs and two aces. Mears added six kills and 10 digs, and Tyler Protano-Goodwin had a solid all-around match.

Although this match went only three games, it had the feel of a five-gamer.

Kudos to anyone who thought at the start of the season that these two teams would be there in the end. Longmeadow made some noise late last season and may have benefited from Mulry's coaching. Amherst lost five of six starters from last year's championship squad.

"I think we all knew Longmeadow was going to be better," Schmitt said. "And I think my team exceeded my expectations. I'm very proud of how far they came."

back to top

By JASON REMILLARD
jremillard@repub.com

The Longmeadow High School volleyball team knew from its first glimpse of Westborough that its hands would be full in last night's Division II state semifinal.

Westborough and Longmeadow both played in the Spalding Volleyball Hall of Fame Showcase of Champions last month, and Longmeadow coach George Mulry was impressed with what he saw that day.

The Rangers were all that and then some last night, playing near flawless volleyball to end the Lancers' season with a 25-12, 25-19, 25-15 semifinal victory at Marlborough High School.

Westborough (21-1) will face Bourne (20-5) in Saturday's final at 3 p.m. at Hudson High School.

"They were everything we expected," Longmeadow coach George Mulry said.

What the Rangers brought was solid hitting led by seniors Christina Carr and Danielle Coffey. Those two big swingers attacked from virtually every angle. Longmeadow could not match up with the height along the net.

The gap between the teams was apparent early, as Westborough cruised to a 25-12 win in game one. Carr had three of the last six Ranger points in that game.

Longmeadow (21-3) was able to make a run in game two. The Lancers never led, but they did come as close as three points in the waning stages.

Again, Carr was responsible for the game point on a spike to the back row.

While the Lancers looked to keep a positive attitude in game three, it was hard to do so amidst the Westborough onslaught. Carr, Coffey and Mina Baban were the big hitters. Coffey sent the Rangers to the final with a big spike for match point.

"They had way more weapons," Mulry said. "Their height alone, our blockers could do nothing with that."

"They didn't have a good answer for our offense," Westborough coach Roger Anderson said. "But they're scrappy, man."

Losing in the state semifinals hardly puts a damper on a tremendous season for Longmeadow in its first season under Mulry and assistant Ken Bisulca as the Lancers won their first Eastern Division and Western Massachusetts titles.

back to top