Yorktown got off to a good start in its contest against visiting Lakeland on Sept. 10 and built off that to garner a 3-0 (25-12, 25-11, 25-17) victory against the Hornets.
“It’s fun to play our rivals,” said Yorktown senior captain Jack Brunner. “We get excited every time we play them. So it feels just a little extra bit better than just a regular win.”
The Huskers got the jump by getting off to a 14-2 lead in the first set. Having great team camaraderie helped Yorktown get to its A-game from the get-go.
“We are a very close team,” Brunner said. “We had a lot of energy on the sideline that I was hearing, so that motivated us to work hard. On the court, we kept communicating with each other.”
Yorktown closed out the first set by winning six of the last eight points, with Brunner's fellow senior captain, Justin Sek (8 aces, 10 digs, 10 kills), serving four of those winning points—including an ace.
“We had everything flowing,” Sek said. “Everything was working; our passing and communication was great.”
But Lakeland—which has improved from last year and earned a 3-0 (25-14, 25-17, 28-26) road win at Ossining in the Hornets' Sept. 6 opener—fought back early in the second set. The local rivals went back and forth, with Yorktown clinging to a 9-7 lead.
“We’ve been putting in the work, each of us working on our own game,” said Lakeland senior Kenny Bui. “We now just have to continue to get better.”
One of Lakeland’s points very early in the second set came on a great play by Addison Cuevas, who leapt high above the net and knocked the ball down for the kill, to register a point for the Hornets.
“Addison is a hard worker,” Bui said. “He works really hard to be the player that he is.”
But Yorktown kept grinding and slowly built its lead, going up 12-9. At that point, it was Sek’s turn to serve—and he was spectacular: The Huskers scored 11 points in a row while he was serving. That included at least two aces, giving the hosts a 23-10 advantage on their way to a 25-11 victory in set two.
“Just staying focused on the line, doing my normal routine, taking a deep breath before I serve,” said Sek on his success. “I’ve practiced my serve over 1,000 times, so it’s just like muscle memory.”
The last of the 11 points in a row scored by Yorktown came when Franklin Ringel (10 kills, 5 blocks) perfectly placed the ball over the net where the Hornets couldn’t get it.
“He is really good at staying aware, he’s always watching the ball, and watching the players,” Sek said of Ringel. “He’s always ready at the net.”
Lakeland continued to put up a fight in the third set. With Yorktown leading 19-14, the Hornets were in striking distance before the Huskers won six of the last nine points in the set to win 25-17 and seal the match.
Sid Shenoy (1 ace, 7 kills, 2 blocks) also stood out for Yorktown.
While disappointed with the loss, playing a championship contender gave the Hornets (1-1) the opportunity to learn which aspects of their game must improve to reach the next level.
“We have to work at passing and overall defense,” Bui said. “I can’t really say much because I didn’t have a good performance today, but I would say that’s what we should work on.”
Meanwhile, Yorktown relished the win over crosstown rivals.
“It means a lot,” Sek said. “Lakeland is always fun to play against. We came at them with everything that we had.”
Yorktown started the week with a 3-0 (25-7, 25-3, 25-18) triumph at Carmel on Sept. 8, led by Ringel (7 kills), Wesley McGuire (9 service aces), and Shenoy (5 service aces, 7 kills).
Sek (5 digs, 16 kills, 7 aces, 4 assists), Alex Mezquita (10 kills, 3 blocks), and Shenoy (7 kills, 5 aces, 6 blocks) helped the Huskers (5-0) finish the week with a 3-0 (25-17, 25-16, 25-17) victory at Brewster on Sept. 12.
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