Westhampton Beach Boys Volleyball Falls to Connetquot in Close Sets, 3-1

Despite the loss of some key players, senior outside hitter Declan Kerns is thrilled with how his Westhampton Beach boys volleyball team fought across a 3-1 loss to Connetquot last Thursday.

Though almost a near sweep, the set scores tell a very different story, with the Hurricanes dropping the first two sets, 25-19 and 25-23, before winning the third, 25-21, then ultimately falling in the final set, 25-21.

“It’s hard losing Daniel Haber, Conor Farnan, Josh Aponte and Joe Green, but we showed up and we played our game. We were definitely in it,” said Kerns, before adding Westhampton’s (2-1) first loss of the season is an important one. “It’s not fun to lose, but it’s good to lose, sometimes, and it’s good to know how it feels to come from behind — it teaches you to play your hardest even when you’re down.”

The senior captain definitely played up to his potential, coming away with 12 kills, 13 digs, four block assists, two solo blocks and two aces.

“I love his grit and determination,” head coach Josh Tuttle said of his team leader. “He’s the guy you know is going to fight and work hard to score a point when your back is against the wall.”

But the entire team never gave up, even when the ball wasn’t falling the Hurricanes’ way. Westhampton was down, 13-8, before rallying back to tie the first set at 17-all. Kerns picked up three kills over that span, the second on a ball dumped into empty space up front to give his team a much-needed boost.

“I love seeing the big smiles on their face and the fire it lights under them,” Kerns said. “But I’m just here doing my part and playing the role that I have to play. I’m doing it for the boys.”

Junior outside hitter Alec Kelly (seven kills) picked up his first of the match to pull the Hurricanes within 1, 17-16, and junior setter Seth Terry (19 assists, five digs and four kills) collected his second kill to tie it. A Connetquot (3-0) violation and Kelly block forced the Thunderbirds to call timeout, but Westhampton’s opponents went on a 5-1 run to reknot the score, and though junior middle blocker Will Jankowski’s kill (five kills, seven digs, four block assists, one solo block and an ace) retied the set, Connetquot found the gap twice more to take it home.

The second set started differently from the first, with the Hurricanes picking up steam across four straight points for a 7-3 early advantage, but Connetquot slowly worked its way back in it, this time, to bring the set to 16-all. Westhampton struggled to return the ball inbounds, and the Thunderbirds continued to capitalize on empty space in the middle, finding it for the last time late in the set for a 22-19 lead that forced Westhampton to call for a regroup. Out of the huddle, Connetquot forced three straight Hurricane errors to win it.

“You could tell we were just a little tired and didn’t bring the 100 percent we needed to bring to every set,” Tuttle said. “Still, they fought hard. We played hard. Every team has been stronger, but even our game has gotten stronger.”

That was evident in the third set, with Westhampton pulling ahead, 20-16, on an out-of-bounds Connetquot serve. Despite the Thunderbirds going on a 5-1 run to tie, junior setter Casey Sidor’s kill and service point, and three Kerns spikes for points sealed the deal.

“We needed ammunition, and he gave it to us,” Terry said of Kerns. “We also divided the roles out more this year, and we have a lot of good weapons. It’s a team effort, not a one-man job, and all the pressure drills we did really helped us today.”

In the fourth set, the two teams continued to trade leads, with Kerns’s kill bringing the set to 17-15 Connetquot, before some Westhampton misses, like a tip out of bounds, helped the Thunderbirds widen their lead to 22-15. The Hurricanes willed their way back in it with a Jankowski kill, Terry-Ben Donahue block and two Terry kills, but Connequot’s final dump into space won it.

“I think regardless of the score, we played great,” Terry said. “We could have died in that fourth set, so I’m proud of how we hung in there, and we’ve improved a lot since our first game — with our blocking, especially, and our chemistry on the court.”

Tuttle said the loss doesn’t change the team’s long-term expectation of competition for a county championship.

“We know we’ve still got work to do,” Tuttle said. “This is all about the improvement process, and I’m really proud of the progress. Everybody stuck together and showed the mental strength and determination of a veteran team.”

Kerns said his Hurricanes are getting closer and closer with every practice and competition to being just that.

“Having all this diversity really helps — everyone can pass the ball, everyone can set the ball, everyone can get a kill, everyone can block. It’s important having guys like that,” Kerns said. “When we bring it all together, we’re going to be a problem.”