Boys' volleyball: Dragons reach a historic height

The HSMSE boys' varsity volleyball team battled to an eight and two record to make the playoffs this year. Their success was attributed to their growth as team, especially by their seniors.

Four-year players Yussef Elbagory, Will Esseks, and Isaac Draper have been leaders and “go to” players on the court this season. Their experience helped the team focus on higher level tactics and add more variety to their gameplay because they were able to lead and coordinate the team on the court.

“Isaac, Will, and Yussef all improved in terms of consistency and confidence in games,” coach Nick Diunte said.

This improvement in confidence allowed Esseks, Elbagory, and Draper to be leaders on the court and in practice. Draper's setting led the league in assists. His ability to set up plays is critical to the team’s success and without him their road to the playoffs likely would have been much more troublesome than it was.

Many players also made significant improvements in individual skills such as passing and attacking over the offseason. Both his teammates and his coach applauded Damar Mercado-Hastings for improving his swing and approach to hitting since last year.

“Damar improved his swing and got more kills," senior Samson Lin said. "[He] improved in [his] blocks and digging.”

Developing game-like situations during practice helped the team create a positive attitude going into games and reading their opponents. Practice was an essential factor for not only their improvement on the court, but also for their mentality as a team.

“Always just creating competitive situations in practice helps with games and having a group of guys that always want to be on the floor and compete towards playing time," Diunte said. "I think having that atmosphere in practice turned over into the games.” 

Their efforts during practice shined on the court as they worked together to read and adjust to their opponents more efficiently than ever before. The team was able to communicate on both offense and defense to implement new plays and control the pace of the game. Their competitive atmosphere during practice also helped the team create stronger relationships with one another and bond during tough games and losses.

“[We] grew a lot as a team in terms of the ability to handle adversity and go forward from it together and come out ahead,” Diunte said.

The Dragons only lost two games, both to Stuyvesant, but they still came together after games, practice, and even during their free time to work on their flaws.

“Coming together after a tough loss and seeing what we need to work on after each game was a team building experience this year,” Lin said.

By: Charles Dicus and Armani Damiron

The Dragons make the playoffs for the second year in a row

The Dragons / S. Louie

This spring the High School for Math Science and Engineering’s volleyball team made the playoffs for the second consecutive year. They finished their season with a tie for third place in their division with the  High School for Environmental Studies. Both incoming freshman and hardworking seniors carried the team to the first round of the playoffs.

The team had to overcome an 0-2 start while they were missing key seniors. “We were missing people like Jeremy [Wain Hirschberg] and Yassine [Khaliqui],” said Kofi Kordie, one of the outside hitters for the team. 

As the season progressed the team gained experience.  

“We all improved, learning to work together and becoming more comfortable with each other,” said junior setter Spencer Sharp.

The closer they got to the playoffs, the mentality of the team changed. 

“[Our attitude toward playing changed. We started to get more hype about playing,” said freshman Lemuel Burgos. 

The determination of the team netted them a 7-3 finish in their last 10 games which helped them secure a spot in the playoffs.

In the first round of the 2013 PSAL volleyball playoffs the Dragons faced Christopher Columbus High School. The Dragons went down  0-1, with the team battling hard but eventually falling in the second set. 

“The first set of the playoffs we were very nervous, the second set we were more comfortable, said Kordie. 

One of the most influential  freshman that helped the Dragons get to the playoffs was Burgos. He had to fill in for Dionys Gutierrez, the Dragon’s middle hitter, who was ineligible during the duration of the regular season. 

“Lemuel was expected to pick up Dionys’ position, he was expected to block and hit, which he delivered pretty well,” said Kordie.

Even though the Dragons were knocked out of the first round of the playoffs, they tried their hardest and hope to make it to the playoffs next year. This will mostly depend on the the development of the  underclassmen who will be taking the place of the seniors.

Contributed by Sahar Saedi and Shawn Watts

The HSMSE volleyball team's win

HSMSE Volleyball

On Wednesday afternoon, the High school for Math, Science, and Engineering’s volleyball team won their  exhibition match against Bronx High School of Science's "B" team. HSMSE had a victory with a well played three set sweep.

Bronx Science started the game with a seven point lead, and they quickly lost it as HSMSE fought back in the second half of their first set. Over the span of the match the scores were close but HSMSE managed to pull off the win for the set each time. These close matches led to the sweep, leaving Bronx Science without a win.

Rudy Outar, HSMSE’s outside hitter, had a great game, but he did not lead the team in kills. However, he played a significant role in their win. He had nine attacks, two kills, and two errors throughout the match, but the errors were minor mistakes he can prevent from happening next game. He said in an interview, "I need to improve on positioning the ball." Ending the game with only two errors had a positive impact on the team for the time he spent on the court. HSMSE should continue what they are doing and prepare for their next match this week.

2011 HSMSE Boys Volleyball Season Recap

2011 HSMSE Boys Varsity Volleyball Team

Although the HSMSE Dragons started out with a win, the passing season was a bumpy ride. HSMSE’s boys volleyball team is a rising club with no senior players. The team had five victories this season; however, this was just the beginning. As the team progresses to next season, they will be able to play better together. According to outside hitter, Yassine Khaliqui, the team was able to work together well, but still can improve. “We worked very well, bonded with each other so that next year we will be able to work better.”

After considerate thinking, players Leon Jon and Xinghai Zhang agreed that Thomas Kui is the team's most valuable player. The team plays considerably well when everyone on the team contributes and Kui greatly adds to the play on the court. Kui leads the team in multiple stats with 15 aces, 65 service points, and 33 kills. He especially provides support through his defense with 41 digs. When he returns spikes and makes plays, the whole team feels comfortable and encouraged.

Although there are no senior players, there are many players who now have a second year of competition under their belts. Everyone who was on the team last year greatly improved over this past season. Kenneth Hungria, a junior on the team, was one of the returning players from last season. His stats increased drastically this year. In the 2010 season, he had only 21 service points and 34 assists, which increased to 33 service points and 66 assists in the 2011 season. Many of the other players had similar increases. This shows how much better the team is getting and their ability to improve.

When asked about a memorable game for the team, coach Diunte reflected on their last of the season against Frederick Douglas Academy. He remembers having called a timeout at a pivotal point in the match and noticed a change in the team's attitude. “You could see after the timeout that they were determined not to lose that match,” said Diunte. The team’s evident determination drove them to push themselves in the game. Diunte remarked about their hustle during the game. “They dived for balls and saved plays [which] made for exciting game play.” This was the extra effort that gave them the 2-1 lead over FDA, which they were able to secure until the games end. The Dragons had encountered the team once before in early April but lost 2-1. This time around, Diunte noted that our own team, “Carried the momentum and easily won the game to avenge the loss against FDA.” In that game, Ardit Piroli made 9 kills while Thomas Kui had 18 service points and Kenneth Hungria led with 10 assists. With 20 assists overall, the boys volleyball team demonstrated that they are capable of working efficiently as a team when the circumstances are pressing.

Many of the players on the team see growth for next season. Freshmen player Spencer Sharp said, "We have a long way to go to reach the top because we are a young team. We are still growing. We can get a lot better over the year.” According to Sharp, the team played better as the season went along. “We got a feel of each person’s ability. Through playing together, we found out each other’s strengths and weaknesses.” Learning these strengths and weaknesses will allow the team to realize this improvement next season.

Contributed by: Marcelo Bravo, Daniel Lee, Haoli Mei and Ankhe Tomer

2011 Boys Varsity Volleyball Stats

Player Name	Matches	Aces	ServicePts	Assists	Blocks	Digs	Kills
Ardit Piroli	11	5	24	1	0	10	44
Benjamin Moosher	10	3	9	0	1	2	15
Benny Yan	7	0	3	0	0	1	3
Dionys Guiterrez	8	0	1	0	0	1	2
Jeremy Wain Hirschberg	12	10	53	68	0	19	17
Joan Lee	3	0	0	0	0	0	0
Kenneth Hungria	12	9	33	66	0	17	2
Kharizza A. Empedrado	5	0	0	0	0	0	0
Leon Jon	2	0	0	0	0	0	0
Rudy Outar	12	7	42	1	1	12	24
Spencer Sharp	12	0	0	4	0	4	4
Thomas Kui	11	15	65	1	0	41	33
Xinghai Zhang	6	0	0	0	0	0	0
Yassine Khaliqui	12	9	40	2	0	30	29