Hamburg is only divisional foe in Amherst's way
Boys volleyball
by PATRICK J. NAGY Reporter

Williamsville North's Nick Hereth blocks the shot of West Seneca West's Mike Lonegran during the Spartans' 25-16, 18-25, 25-19 home win last Wednesday. It was North's second ECIC Division I win of the season. Photo by Joe Eberle Purchase color photos at www.BeeNews.com

So far, the only team that has been able to stop Amherst Central in ECIC Division II has been Hamburg.

The Bulldogs, ranked fifth in Western New York, gave the eighth-ranked Tigers (9-1, 5-1) their only loss of the 2007 season with a 22-25, 23-25 win on Sept. 11. Last Saturday, Hamburg beat Amherst, 25-19, 25-13, in the finals of the Sweet Home Tournament.

"They seem to be the team to beat, at least in our division," said Amherst coach Jeremy Schwob.

In the Sweet Home finals, Schwob said his team couldn't match up with Hamburg's size and were coming off an emotional come-from-behind three-game win over Williamsville North in the semifinals. Amherst trailed the Spartans, 15-10, in the third game, yet came back to win 25-21. Amherst won the first game, 25-20; North followed with a 25-20 victory in the second game.

Schwob lauded the play of seniors Charlie Hays (setter), Charlie Gomez (outside hitter), Brent Doerflein (outside hitter) and Zach Willet (right side hitter) for their leadership on the court during the tournament, especially against North.

Hays and Gomez were named to the Sweet Home all-tournament team, although Schwob feels Gomez would have been tourney MVP had Amherst won.

"He was the best player there," said Schwob.

Amherst traveled to Hamburg for a league match on Tuesday, but results were unavailable before The Bee went to press.

Amherst also lost in the finals of the Cheektowaga Tournament, losing to third-ranked Maryvale, 12-25, 19-25. Maryvale also defeated Amherst in pool play.

"We don't have the biggest team in the world, so we had a tough time matching up with them," said Schwob. "They have a real quick offense and ran a lot of plays we hadn't seen before."

Hays and Gomez were named to the all-tournament team.

Amherst also beat Sweet Home, 30-20, to win the silver bracket final of the Clarence Invitational.

Amherst's regular season wins have come over Clarence, East Aurora, St. Francis, West Seneca East (twice), Williamsville East, Lake Shore, Williamsville South and Iroquois.

Schwob said the score of the Tigers' first game over South was 25-5.

"It was the best game we played all year," said Schwob. "We were on fire, especially junior middle hitter Dave Greetham. Charlie Hays was hitting the ball everywhere."

Amherst hosts Williamsville East following the JV game, which starts at 6 p.m. on Thursday.

"If we keep learning from our mistakes, especially in the middle, and continue our intensity, I think we'll be a force to be reckoned with come sectional time," said Schwob.

Williamsville North

The Spartans' main problem all season on the court has been consistency.

"I'm not sure what team is going to show up for each match," said North coach Paul O'Connor. "There are times in games where my outside hitters will hit six balls out of bounds and the middle hitters will hit well; then there are other times when it's the outside hitters hitting the balls down for points and the middle hitters are the ones hitting balls out of bounds."

A perfect example is in the Spartans' league loss to Frontier on Sept. 11. North led 11-2 at one point in the first game, yet lost, 25-20. The Spartans lost the second game, 17-25.

North is 2-3 in ECIC Division I with wins over Sweet Home (25-15, 25-22) and West Seneca West (25-16, 18-25, 25-19). The Spartans also beat Depew, 25-15, 25-21, 23-25, 24-26, 25-15, in a nonleague match on Monday.

In tournament play, the Spartans aren't faring much better. They lost to Eden 17-25, 15-25, in the quarterfinals of the gold playoffs at the Clarence Invitational and lost to Amherst in the semifinals at Sweet Home. North squandered a 15-10 lead against Amherst in the third game to lose 25-21.

"We really should have beaten them," said O'Connor. "There were free balls that were tossed over the net to us that we couldn't pass to each other and we lost points. Two of our guys would go to hit a ball and it would fall in between them."

O'Connor only lauded the play of senior setter Drew Moscato and senior middle hitter Nick Hereth from the Sweet Home tournament. Moscato was named to the all-tournament team.

"Drew has been very consistent," said O'Connor. "He's been running everywhere to get the ball up in the air to take hits."

North plays Sweet Home on Thursday and Frontier on Friday, both after JV games at 5 p.m., before competing at 9 a.m. Saturday in the Williamsville South tournament, an event they've won five out of the last six years.

Sweet Home

The Panthers made the quarterfinals of their own tournament on Saturday but fell to Kenmore East, 25-23, 16-25, 17-25.

"The kids played with confidence the entire tournament," said Sweet Home coach Rich Cicero. "We were mentally in every game. Even in the games we lost, I thought we played well."

That includes a 23-25, 22-25 loss in pool play to eventual tournament champion Hamburg.

Sweet Home, 0-5 in ECIC Division I and 0-6 overall, lost to Amherst, 30-20, to take second in the silver bracket of the Clarence Invitational.

"Hopefully, we're turning the corner," said Cicero. "If we keep progressing, I think we'll earn few wins and go far in the playoffs."

Senior middle hitter Dan Miranda, sophomore left side outside hitter Cody Stonish and junior outside hitter Brian Price have been the team's biggest contributors, Cicero said.

"It's been a real team effort," said Cicero. "It's not been one go-to guy. There's no superstar on the team, just a group of kids giving their best effort."

Sweet Home played at Lancaster on Tuesday, but results were unavailable before The Bee went to press. They host Williamsville North following the JV match at 5 p.m. on Thursday.

e-mail: pnagy@beenews.com