The Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School men’s varsity volleyball team hosted the Northeast High School Hurricanes on Friday, March 15. This was the fourth game for the season for the Eagles and the first home game of the season.
Entering the game, the Eagles had a record of 1-2, with a win over Coral Glades High School and losses to Hollywood Hills High School and Cypress Bay High School. After dropping their most recent game to Cypress Bay, the Eagles hoped to bounce back against the Tornadoes with a win and improve to .500 this season.
“We’ve been working on a lot of hitting recently and offense, and I think that really showed today,” head coach Aidan Gidon said. “We played a lot more aggressively than when we started at the beginning of the season. “
On the other hand, this was the first game of the season for the Hurricanes. After falling short in the district playoffs just a year prior, the Tornadoes looked to start the new year off strong with a win over the Eagles.
The first set was all Eagles. They took an initial lead, and never once lost it for the remainder of the set. With a mix of great serves and capitalizing on points, the Eagles won the first set with a score of 25-12.
“I think my serves were the best today because at one point I won seven points in a row without losing a point on my serve,” libero Jace Perkins (22) said. “Our servers were all on point and I don’t think we missed many serves.”
After dominating in the first set, the Eagles came out even stronger in the second set. They kept a big lead throughout the entirety of the set, resulting in another big win. The score was 25-10 in favor of the Eagles.
“I did great on my passing and defense today because I just got more reps with it and I was more consistent,” outside hitter Spencer Edelman (6) said. “I think we had some good hits overall, we were able to get and the serving was very good today.”
The third set favored the Eagles once again. They got off to a strong start, maintaining a double digit lead for most of the set. Despite the Hurricanes making a late push, the Eagles won the final set of the match with a score of 25-16.
“We need to work on keeping our composure,” middle Sam Stember (21) said. “Yes we won 3-0, but we still made many mistakes and definitely got carried away, especially towards the end of the game. If we don’t keep our composure, then our minds won’t be in the game. No matter if we win 3-0 or lose 0-3, it is important to focus on getting better and perfecting our skills.”
Following the victory over the Tornadoes, the Eagles will play their next game of the season on the road against McArthur High School on Monday, March 18.
