HSMSE boys' volleyball outplays Bronx Science "B" team

HSMSE player getting ready for the ball

Kevin Chun is a senior libero for the High School for Math, Science and Engineering boys’ volleyball team. In their scrimmage match against the Bronx High School of Science's "B" team, Chun held off the offense to give the Dragons a win. Chun’s job as a libero is to dig and pass the ball to the setter to set up their offense.

Chun used his quick hands in order to get great digs that kept easy spikes from scoring important points. He had digs that set up the setter which led to great spikes by the outside hitters. Chun was able to keep the game going when balls went out of bounds and when the team couldn’t get to the ball in time. Chun used his communication skills to call the ball in order to limit confusion. The lack of communication was eminent in the beginning of the game until Chun started calling his passes. He was also superb in serving. He had three aces and all of his serves were inbound. His accuracy was spot on and he visibly aimed for the center of the court, Bronx Science’s weakness.

Chun should be commended for his amazing hustle. When the team lost interest in a supposedly out of bounds ball, Chun would move quickly to the back court to save the ball. He gave hope to the team as he constantly kept the ball alive and gave the team more chances to score. “[My game play] will keep the game alive and give us more chances,” said Chun when asked about how his game play will affect the season.

HSMSE Dragons win against Lab Museum's Gators

On December 20th, the HSMSE Dragons faced off against the Lab Museum's Gators and produced a 51-40 victory over the Gators. The game seemed easy for the Dragons as they were constantly ahead throughout the entire game. The Dragons made great passes leading to beautifully executed assists.

The Dragons opened up the game strong, exercising their superior physical abilities in terms of height and speed. The Dragons were able to get down the court and execute their plays with ease. The Gators let them into the paint making scoring for the extremely tall Dragons a breeze. The Gators also let many of the players remain undefended allowing for easy three pointers. During the second quarter the Dragons lost their lead because of the sluggishness they showed on the court after seemingly tiring out from the first quarter.

Throughout the second half of the game the Dragons were able to rack up the points, but not without cost. The Dragons racked up nine fouls, giving the Gators the points that they needed. Eli Auslander of the Dragons said, “Fouls were our Achilles heel of the game and we gave up shots and without them we would have done much better.” That is the main thing that the Dragons needed to work on.

Overall the Dragons played excellently and have been doing very well this season in general standing 3-1. A much better position than they were last season and they have been improving over the past few years in general. It is still early in the season, but we are all hoping for a very successful for the Dragons.