Girls Volleyball: Tuckers bounce Clippers, return to county final
After helping the Mattituck High School girls volleyball team pass its first playoff test in flying colors, Madison Osler posed for photos on the court with a couple of fans holding handmade signs with Osler’s name on them.
It was fitting since Osler had just played well enough to be deserving of her own personal fan club.
One couldn’t help but be a fan of how well Osler, in particular, and the Tuckers, in general, played. From start to finish, they didn’t have a hiccup in Wednesday’s Suffolk County Class C Tournament semifinal. At the other extreme was Greenport/Southold, which struggled mightily from beginning to end and never found its way.
It all added up to a remarkably one-sided result — 25-7, 25-8, 25-8 — in Mattituck’s favor.
The top-seeded Tuckers (15-4) remained on course in their defense of their Long Island title. They will play No. 2 Babylon or No. 3 Center Moriches for the county crown on Monday night at Suffolk County Community College in Brentwood.
If the Tuckers are to go far, win the Long Island championship and advance to the New York State semifinal pool for the fifth time in six years, they will need production from their top outside hitters, Kathryn Zaloom and Osler. Both sophomores made an impact in the semifinal. Osler put away eight kills and Zaloom pounded seven.
Carly Doorhy provided 21 assists.
The fourth-seeded Clippers (5-7) never quite looked in sync, falling behind by 21-3 in the first game, 17-6 in the second game and 19-4 in the third in front of a heavy turnout of spectators in Mattituck’s gym.
Things were so rough for the Clippers that they served only 24 times. In comparison, the Tuckers put up 74 serves, including all 27 that Zaloom put in play.
Mattituck’s coach, Frank Massa, liked his team’s serve receiving. The Tuckers allowed only one service ace and looked sharp, making only a handful of errors, by Massa’s count.
Massa also liked the play of Skyler Grathwohl and Dawn Rochon at the net. The match ended on a block by Grathwohl.
As a team, the Clippers managed only seven kills, four by Marina DeLuca.
Photos: Mattituck’s Carly Doorhy, left, and Skyler Grathwohl rejoice following their team’s county semifinal win over Greenport/Southold. (Credit: Garret Meade)
