The boys’ varsity volleyball team made its way through the regular volleyball season with an astounding record of 11 wins and only one loss to Winston Churchill. Although the team was hopeful to snatch the final’s title this year, they ultimately lost to Churchill in a 3-0 blowout on May 15.
With key players graduating out last year, the team, consisting of Eli Umar, Jackson Beaver, Jeffery Liu, Kenneth Lin, Darek Yu, Timothy OuYang, Temi Ademola, John Liu, Kelvin Zhou, Jai Mohale, Lance Wei, Max Lizondo, Stephen Cheng, Jacob Wang and Nelson Chang built chemistry and strategy throughout the season. Players were able to form team bonds that would serve as a source of strength throughout the season. “We were able to form new chemistry with new people this year,” Liu said.
As a middle blocker, Liu’s role in the team is to prevent powerful spikes from the opposing team to make it onto their side of the court, and to block shots made by the opposing team. The team this year employed a “triple middle” strategy, with occasional variance throughout games, typically a co-ed system, with one true middle and two fake middles, which allowed for greater flexibility and adaptability during games. “It just worked out best with our roster and who our players were individually,” Beaver said.
One of the biggest strengths of the team lay in their focused mindset. “It is our ability to not be fazed by a loss, to continue pushing,” Liu said.
With their only loss to Churchill, the team went into the finals match with the goal to win and without fear. Strategically, the team’s biggest points of strength vary from game to game, but overall their exceptional passing and server-setting helped the team cruise to the finals with high scoring games along the way.
Coach Tony Malinauskas was integral to the team’s chemistry and strength. Malinauskas’ personal connection with the players served as a source of inspiration and mental grit throughout the season. “Tony is a very down to earth coach. He deeply cares about his players,” Beaver said.
In the end, despite their loss, players are happy with their time on the team and satisfied with their time on the volleyball court. “We had a great season and we had a lot of great guys. Although it was a disappointing end to the season, I think we had a good journey,” Liu said.
Volleyball has become a lifestyle to players on the team and players are looking to continue their athletic journeys into college either professionally or recreationally. “I think I’ll play for college club teams,” Liu said.
