This afternoon at Albertus Magnus High School, Section 1 opened it’s volleyball season in a five game slug fest between two rebuilding squads.

The Falcons were the victors at the end of the evening.

You can catch most of the action in tomorrow’s paper but here’s a few tidbits I thought deserved a little mentioning:

Both teams had some trouble with low hanging ceilings and the flow of the first three games was often interrupted but as both teams began to get a feel for the court, the last games really came to life.

Regina’s Jessica Pizzarello, a first year Varsity senior, finished the night with six aces – when she started with the Tigers she didn’t know how to serve.

Coach Liz Pugsley explained, “There’s four of them who are seniors and they are actually very good friends outside of the team. When it comes to time when they were bored they would toss the volleyball around. One of my girls, Jessica Pizzarello, when she came to Maria Regina didn’t know how to serve.” Pugsley added how dominating Pizzarello’s serve has become and can be crucial in games.

Both Pugsley and the Tigers only returning player Colleen Slattery seemed pleased by the match played even though they didn’t pull out the win.

“Considering that yesterday we didn’t have a real practice, today I was surprised,” Slattery said. “I didn’t expect we would play this well. This year, I think we’re going to be good because we play together even though we have so many young players.”

Teammate senior Stephanie Halpin had a big night with six aces, six digs, three kills, two assists and a block.

Pugsley said her team exceeded her expectations. The Tigers play Scarsdale on Monday at home at 4:30 p.m.

As for Magnus, Bridget Curran had a pretty big night for the Falcons with seven assists, three kills, three digs and two aces.

Teammate Paulina Quinonnes had seven digs as well and was a strong presence in the back row. Quinonnes and teammate Theresa Miller just barely avoided injury when they collided but both shook it off and went on to play two of the best games in the match.

Communication was a little slow to pick up on the court for both teams but coach Valerie McFadden said it’s just something you always need to work on.

“There are always one or two who are a little shy and you have to get them to make it habit. We are always working on it.”

The Falcons will play Westlake on Friday in what McFadden has predicted to be a tough game.

So remember to check out the paper tomorrow for even more information (including the game scores, which I am keeping from you).

~Casey