On May 3rd at Colonia High School, Colonia’s boys volleyball team matched up against JFK. The 8-8 Colonia Patriots vs the 5-7 Mustangs was one to watch. Both teams needed to grab a win.
After intense pre-game drills by both teams and a friendly wishing of good luck to each other, the match began. Colonia looked to have the upper hand to start the game. Good passing and setting allowed them to find ways to keep JFK’s defense guessing. Kills were coming from all the sides of the court. In the game, Luke Valeriano led the team with 12 assists. Claudio Suwu also had 6, which was second on the team during the game. Suwu also led the team in aces, with 4. The first set was taken in rather easy fashion by Colonia, 25-15. It was a comfortable win in the first set, but JFK wasn’t going to be put out quietly. JFK were willing to show determination as they wanted to win the second set and get back into the game. The Mustangs believed that they could still win the game.
After a brief period of changing sides and allowing teams to have a quick huddle, the second set began. Unfortunately for the Mustangs, the second set was an exact duplicate of the first. It didn’t go exactly point for point with the first one, but, the scoreline was the same. A 25-15 win for the Patriots in the second set ended the game.
Sahil Sangu was the key man that kept Colonia one step ahead of JFK. In the game, he totaled 7 kills, which was the most on Colonia and tied with Rishi Patel of JFK for the most in the game. Sangu also dominated on the defensive end, as he added in 2 blocks. As a result, he won player of the game honors. Kyle Kirejevas was also a key player for the Patriots. His 13 digs were the most in the match. The next closest was Claudio Suwu, with 7. Personally, I feel that digs is what gave Colonia the upper hand in the game. All but one of Colonia’s 9 players had a dig. On the other hand, only 2 of the Mustangs had digs. The Patriots were always looking to keep plays alive and they did so with success.
Good defense and offense came together to beat the Mustangs in 2 sets. Sangu shined and everyone played their role well and it all came together. All statistics are via highschoolsports.com.
