It was a long, hard climb for Yorktown’s boys volleyball team in its quest to get its first sectional title in school history, but all the sweat and tears was well worth it.
No. 2 Yorktown at last savored the sweet taste of victory, getting that elusive sectional crown by defeating No. 1 Croton/Briarcliff/Hen Hud 3-1 (25-12, 25-18, 22-25, 25-21) in the Section 1 Division 2 Finals at the Westchester County Center in White Plains on Nov. 13.
The win came after the two teams split two matches during the regular season and shared the League I-C title, each recording a 7-1 league record.
The night was in stark contrast to a season ago, when, as the No. 1 seed, the Huskers fell to No. 2 Eastchester 3-0 (11-25, 23-25, 17-25) in the finals at the County Center.
“I feel like winning the section title is really putting boys volleyball on the map in Westchester,” said Yorktown coach TJ Pufahl. “I’ve played and coached men’s college volleyball (at the University of Mount Saint Vincent in the Bronx) and it’s very competitive. A lot of people don’t realize how intense it is until they come to one of our games. We had tonight’s date in our calendar since Aug. 25 (the first day of practice).”
Jack Brunner (4 aces, 40 assists), Justin Sek (15 digs, 20 kills), Franklin Ringel (20 kills, 6 blocks), Xavier Guzman (10 digs, 9 kills, 3 blocks), and Hudson Novak (15 digs) led the Huskers to their historic victory.
“I reminded the boys every single day why we need to work so hard,” Pufahl said. “We didn’t just mistakenly get here. It wasn’t an accident. We worked hard every single day, sometimes seven days a week. We watched film and we worked as a team to win. We picked each other up when we were down, and tried to keep our energy up, no matter what the scoreboard said.”
Noah Won, Saarth Desai, Wesley McGuire, Siddarth Shenoy, Nicholas Jacobs, Alex Mexquita, Aiden Peechatt, Cristiano Rodriguez, Anton Ubozhenko, Cooper McGowan, Tim Fallo (assistant coach) and Julia Fiore (assistant coach) also make up the Huskers’ championship squad.
Yorktown will advance to the state tournament, which starts at 9 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 22, at Finger Lakes Community College, with pool play. The semifinals (noon) and finals (3 p.m.) will be Sunday, Nov. 23 at Roberts Wesleyan University.
Huskers sweep Panas in semis
Before it could go for the title at the County Center, Yorktown had to get past neighboring Walter Panas in the semifinals on Nov. 10.
Spurred on by its student body, The Crop, Yorktown defeated the visiting No. 3 seed decisively (25-13, 25-12, 25-13), with players crediting fan support as a factor in the win.
“The crowd supports us so much,” Sek said. “They give us the energy boost we need. We couldn’t have won this game without them. We came out so strong. Anytime it was close or we were down, they were there for us. They were winning with us, it’s like one whole team.”
Sek ignited Yorktown (20-2) to the first set win with back-to-back kills, skying high above the net both times, that put Yorktown up 17-6.
“Knowing in the moment of the game and all the pressure going on, I just took a deep breath, stayed true to myself, did not let the excitement take over,” Sek said. “I know what I have to do; I can’t rush it.”
Tied at 9-9 in the second set, Yorktown took control by outscoring the Panthers 16-3 on its way to the win.
“We got a few points and went on a run,” Sek said. “We had big role players stepping up like our middle, Franklin Ringel, No. 15. He was amazing today. He just really brought the energy to the team.”
Sek helped the Huskers win the third set by serving four points in a row (including two aces) to give the Huskers an 18-10 lead.
“I just maintained my focus,” Sek said. “I’ve practiced serving so many times, it’s just muscle memory. With the crowd with me, I just felt unstoppable.”
Highlighting the third set was when Pufahl inserted Desai into the lineup late in the match, which set The Crop on fire.
“Saarth hasn’t gotten a whole lot of playing time but he’s a fan favorite, so I did what I had to do for the fans,” Pufahl said with a smile. “I wanted to make the fans happy so they keep coming back.”
Sek (7 digs, 11 kills), Ringel (8 kills, 15 blocks), Brunner (3 aces, 25 assists, 4 kills, 4 blocks), and Novak (15 digs) all stood out for Yorktown versus Panas.
“Tonight, we clicked,” Pufahl said. “We played as a team. We played fired up. We picked up each other up. We worked hard and never let up.”
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