Today I saw the Class D regional final between Haldane and Section 11’s Shelter Island. Haldane had some troubles in the first and third sets, but still emerged with a 3-0 win.

The Blue Devils will now play in the state final four next weekend at the Glens Falls Civic Center. Amazingly, it’s the fourth straight year that Haldane will be making the trip, the last of which ended with a win in the title match over Section 6’s Randolph.

Avery Zuvic had nine kills, 10 digs and three aces for the Blue Devils, who won with game scores of 25-23, 25-17, 25-23.

Alex just checked in from St. Joseph’s College in Pathogue that Haldane defeated Shelter Island of Section 11 3-0.

Avery Zuvic had nine kills and 10 digs in the 25-23, 25-17, 25-23 win.

The Blue Devils advance to the state final which begins with pool-play on Saturday at the Glens Falls Civic Center.

Hey everyone,

We’re getting closer and closer to determining who will make the state final four in each class, but first, I wanted to comment on the boys sectional final.

What a well played match between Suffern and Clarkstown North. The Mounties won 3-0, but all three games were very competitive. Also, I was really impressed with Suffern’s Oliver Svoboda. Just a sophomore, he seemingly played the entire match above the net and finished with 17 kills and five blocks.

Suffern stayed undefeated but it will certainly be challenged in regionals against teams from other sections that have been playing for years. Should be interesting to see what happens.

Also today, I had a story in the paper on Rye swimmer Ryan Feeley, who signed a letter-of-intent with the University of Michigan. Since there isn’t a swimming blog, I wanted to give him some props, but also it reminds me of a streak I have going.

Hey guys,

Sorry about the delay in the Fox Lane and Suffern stats. Our system was down Tuesday night. They are all up now, though Coach Stanford did his own.

Casey

Hey guys,

So I survived the driving, barely.

I just wanted to check in give you an update on the Section 9 matchups on Sunday.

Section 9 had byes going into the regional finals so they will be well rested and well practiced going into Sunday.

First, Class B and Hen Hud. Well, I will be at this game bright and early and thank goodness it’s not far away because I can’t even think about driving right now. (Though I do have to drive home)

So Red Hook is 18-1 going into the regional finals. They defeated James I. O’Neill in straight sets on Monday in the Section 9 final. Danielle Girard is a key hitter for Red Hook.

 Just talked to Alex, who is at Ramapo where Suffern beat Clarkstown North 3-0 to win the inaugural Section 1 boys championship.

Oliver Svoboda had 17 kills and five blocks in the 25-20, 25-19, 25-22 win.

Suffern plays at Cicero-North Syracuse in the regional finals. Suffern will not play beyond that point since this is Section 1’s first  year offering the sport.

Alex will be back with more info in a bit.

So Casey and I made the trip all the way up to the Elmira area to cover four regional semifinals at two different sites. When you drive that far (you know it’s far when you reach Binghamton and you’re not even thinking about stopping yet), you want to see some good volleyball and we certainly got that.

Fox Lane (A), Hen Hud (B), and Westlake© all won their respective matches to advance to the regional final round at SUNY New Paltz this Sunday.

The Sailors won in straight sets, while the Foxes and the Wildcats each won 3-1.

Class AA Suffern was the only Section 1 team to lose today. The Mounties fell to a very strong Horseheads team that defeated them last year in regionals also. Still, another strong season for Suffern, which won the Section 1 championship for a second straight season.

Hey guys,

It’s been a long day so here’s some updates on the day at Corning West High School.

After my 4.5 hour drive to Painted Post, I sat down to the Class A regional quarterfinal with Fox Lane and Vestal. As you’ve read, Fox Lane came out on top in a 3-1, 25-12, 18-25, 25-17, 25-11 match. It was a great match, though I was a little nervous during the second game. The night belongs to Nora Rugova who had 16 kills and 13 assists and Amanda Mathews who had nine aces. Mathews really kept the teams morale up, especially in the third game when it looked like the Foxes were going to go down 2-1.

Suffern stepped up next in the Class AA quarterfinal in a rematch against Horseheads, who ended their season last year in the regional finals. The Mounties just couldn’t pull it together today and their season came to a close tonight in a 25-15, 25-11, 25-19 loss. It was sad to watch this great team’s season end but I only see great things for next season with a solid senior lineup lead by Jenna Hrycyk and Kristin Schmidt.

The Mounties couldn’t get their offense going tonight. Schmidt led the Mounties with seven kills. Hrycyk had six kills. Her defense however proved really essential to the Mounties staying in the game at all. She had eight digs. Amber Morales had seven.

Jessica Crowley had to sit tonight’s game out since she is sick but that gave a few Mounties the chance to step up tonight. Rachel Schwartz and Susan Latimer stepped in for Crowley and did a good job of picking up what Horseheads was throwing at them. Unfortunately, the Blue Raiders were just on fire tonight and for every mistake the Mounties made, Horseheads gained crucial points.

Fox Lane moves on to the regional finals on Sunday at SUNY New Paltz. They will face Section 9’s Cornwall at 3 p.m.

Horseheads faces Section 9’s Pine Bush at 11 a.m.

Alex will be on later to update you on his matches.

~Casey

SCORE REPORTS

Westlake: Westlake won 3-1 against Trumansburg. Michelle Klimas had 26 kills in the 25-22, 21-25, 25-18, 25-12. Westlake will play 1 p.m. Sunday at New Paltz against Section 9’s Millbrook.

Suffern: Suffern lost to Horseheads in three games — 25-15, 25-11, 25-19.

Fox Lane: Casey just called to report that Fox Lane defeated Section 4’s Vestal 3-1. Nora Rugova had 16 kills and 13 assists in the Foxes’ 25-12, 18-25, 25-17, 25-11 win. The Foxes will play Sunday against Section 9’s Cornwall at SUNY New Paltz at 3 p.m. in the regional final.

Hen Hud: Alex just checked in to report that Hen Hud won 3-0 against Owego of Section 4. Ragin Jackson had 16 kills and four blocks in the 25-11, 25-19, 25-15 win. The Sailors play Sunday against Section 9’s Red Hook at SUNY New Paltz at 9 a.m. in the regional final.

BEGINNING OF DAY REPORT

Hi folks –
Alex and Casey are upstate covering all the action for us today.

Be sure to check back for scores.

Here’s today’s lineup:

Class AA
Suffern vs. Horseheads (Section 4) at Corning West High School, 6:30 p.m.

Class A
Fox Lane vs. Vestal (Section 4) at Corning West High School, 4:30 p.m.

Class B
Hen Hud vs. Owego (Section 4) at Horseheads High School, 4:30 p.m.

Class C
Westlake vs. Trumansburg (Section 4) at Horseheads High School, 6:30 p.m.

Thanks to a state volleyball insider (not sure if he wanted me to disclose his name), I have acquired some information on the Section 4 teams.

Let’s start with Class AA. Horseheads does not have a boy playing for the team anymore. They do have three really strong senior hitters and a tall middle hitter that could provide Suffern with problems. Remember, this is the team that defeated Suffern in regionals last year and made the state final four, so this will be a challenging match for the Mounties to say the least.

In Class A, Vestal isn’t overpowering, winning 3-2 in their sectional final. There is a very good chance the Foxes can move on, but they will need another outstanding performance from Nora Rugova.

Class B is what really surprised me.