Neuqua volleyball still undefeated

It was the kind of a boys volleyball match that makes both teams stronger.

Tuesday's early-season showdown between perennial Upstate Eight Conference contenders Neuqua Valley and Lake Park only went two games, with the Wildcats remaining undefeated at 3-0 following a 25-19, 31-29 win, but that second game was an exciting fight to the finish.

Neither team could build more than a 3-point lead in a game that saw 19 ties and only 5 leads changes, as the Wildcats consistently came from behind.

They faced game point three times before taking the lead at 28-27, refusing to let the Lancers' scrappy defense send the match to a third game.

Collin Adler of Neuqua served an ace that dropped just inside the sideline for match point.

"They played great defense and they challenged us," said Neuqua Valley's Jake Blackman. "But we clicked a little bit at the end, came together as a team and started to run some faster plays to put the game away."

The Lancers (3-3) have made the defensive game their main focus this year and it showed as they rescued numerous balls and returned them across the net.

"We had nice swings at the ball and they dug up balls that would have been kills against other teams," said Neuqua Valley coach Erich Mendoza. "It was frustrating, because when the ball comes over as a free ball, that's when you make mistakes."

Lake Park coach Brad Baker was pleased with his team's gutsy performance on defense.

"We've spent a lot of time working on our defense," Baker said. "Our goal is to win games by playing defense. We have enough guys to hit the ball. Our effort in the second game was good, especially the last 15 points. We still have to have better communication and an understanding of what the other team is doing."

Everybody contributed to the defensive effort, with Matt Durbin leading the team with 15 digs, followed closely by Jake Torcasso with 13 and Dan Grose with 9. Scott Harold led with 6 kills and added 3 blocks and 12 assists.

In the end the Wildcats' offensive power, their variety of options and coolness under pressure prevailed.

"We're a good team in tight situations," Blackman said. "Nobody ever gets down and we keep up our intensity. I could tell we were going to put it away, because we just relaxed and focused on the next play."

"Their serve-receive was better than ours," Baker said. "They were in-system more than we were. When you do that you can put the ball away."

Blackman led the Wildcats with 9 kills, followed by Brian Clark who had 8 kills and 3 blocks and Rob Bauer with 6 kills. Sean Harmon, who's getting more and more consistent in the setter's role, dished out 22 assists and even put up a block for a point.

"I wasn't really happy with the way we played," Mendoza said. "We still need consistency."