Haber, Scherer Lead Westhampton Beach Boys Volleyball To Sixth Straight Win

With former top kill-earner Ryan Barnett transferring to Florida it’s been Daniel Haber’s time to shine — and he’s quite literally killing it.

The junior outside hitter earned 12 kills and six aces in Westhampton Beach’s 3-0 sweep of Shoreham-Wading River Friday, 25-15, 25-9, 25-6, and 18 kills and seven digs in the Hurricanes’ 3-0 win over Sayville (1-6) Monday, 25-16, 25-10, 32-30. Monday’s victory was the Hurricanes’ (8-1) seventh straight and fourth sweep of the season.

“Everyone did think we were the underdog, especially after losing Barnett, but I think we’re proving everyone wrong,” Haber said after the win over the Wildcats. “It was a solid match. We played our game the entire time and didn’t let up.”

That’s what first-year head coach Josh Tuttle liked from his team the most — that even going against the lower-seeded Wildcats (2-4) his team maintained its high level of play.

“We had a couple of games where we played lower-ranked teams and we played down to them, so it’s good that we came out strong, played our game, passed well, served well and we were able to get our offense going and firing on all cylinders,” he said. “Our big hitters contributed like we expect them to, and every hitter had a kill today.”

Haber had four kills, three tips and an ace in the first set alone Friday, which remained close until the Hurricanes went on a 9-2 run to bounce out to a 19-11 lead — Haber and senior outside hitter Hank Scherer each had three kills over that span.

“We definitely worked hard collectively, as a team. Everything was there. We were on the same page,” said Scherer, who finished with seven kills and seven aces Friday and seven kills and five aces Monday. “We started off shaky the first couple of games, but we’re getting closer as the season goes on.”

Junior setter Conor Farnan, who had 28 assists, three digs and one kill Friday, said it all starts for his team with strong serving and passing.

“When the passing is good, everything else is there,” said Farnan, who amassed 29 assists and two digs Monday. “We didn’t have a lot of time to practice before our first game, but I don’t think we could have done a much better job. We’ve been playing well all season even with a new group of guys. I think we’ll go on to do great things. We have a lot of talented guys like Dan and Hank and libero Carter Papagni (six digs). I think the sky’s the limit.”

Only three varsity players returned this season, but the team hasn’t skipped a beat.

“We’ve been rolling. It’s been great,” Tuttle said. “It’s just good to have a season, and we even played well against some teams ranked above us this preseason. People might have thought, ‘Oh, I don’t know about them, they’re missing a key hitter,’ but the boys have been outperforming and outshining the rest. I’m really proud of them.”

And despite teams knowing the ball is going to be set up for Haber, he continues to execute almost to perfection.

“Teams know the ball is going to him, but he knows when to go for it and when to be aggressive, and no one has stopped him yet,” the coach said, laughing.

“I just tell myself to hit it hard and keep it on the court,” Haber added, smiling.

Shoreham-Wading River had a sloppy second set, with multiple miscommunication errors leading to easy Westhampton Beach points to put the team out front 10-4 early before a Haber kill was tipped out of bounds by the Wildcats. In the final set, the junior earned seven straight points for his team from the service line, with Connor Gromley earning a kill during that span. Haber liked that the team’s serving was better than usual.

“We were keeping them on the backline. We kept them on their heels,” he said, adding he has enjoyed stepping into a leadership role and helping other hitters improve.

“It’s good to have the guys look up to me and I want to help everyone get better,” Haber said. “It’s been a learning curve for sure, but the guys that have come up really filled everyone’s roles.”

The junior said, with Tuttle stepping up from coaching the junior varsity team, that’s been an easy transition, too.

“Obviously, Jackie Reed moving over to the girls was a loss, but coach Tuttle has been filling her shoes greatly and has been helping all of us improve immensely,” Haber said. “He’s always been there, so it was an easy transition.”

“He knows our strengths and weaknesses. He’s there and in the game with us,” Scherer added. “We were working on getting more people in and being comfortable this game, improvising with whoever was subbing in off the bench — not just focusing on a few players — and we’re looking strong. We’re showing we can compete with anyone.”

Outside hitter Joseph Ramos added six kills, outside hitter Joseph Aponte had four aces, and middle hitter Declan Kerns finished with five digs and a kill in the win over the Wildcats. Middle hitter Joe Green Jr. had five kills, middle hitter Colbie Mason contributed three aces and two kills, Aponte added eight digs and Kerns had three kills, two digs and an ace Monday.

Westhampton Beach has a busy week, even after also sweeping Sayville. The Hurricanes faced Hauppauge (2-5) Wednesday, results of which were not available by press time, and take on Bay Shore (4-0) Thursday on the road at 10 a.m.

“We have to push hard this next week, but I have high expectations moving forward,” Tuttle said. “We have a high bar we set for ourselves.”

Haber said he’s just happy to be back on the court, adding he was counting down the minutes until his 2019 Suffolk County and Long Island-championship-winning team could get back out there.

“I was ecstatic. I couldn’t wait,” Haber said. “It felt great to finally be with my team again, and we’re showing how tough we are. I think we’re going to do just as good as last year, if not better.”