Greenport/Southold girls volleyball falls short in county finals

The Greenport/Southold girls volleyball team’s loss in the Suffolk County finals on Monday night can be parsed in a few ways.

No doubt the Porters were disappointed to be swept in three matches by defending champion Port Jefferson at Southampton High School.

But earning an opportunity to play for the Class C title for the first time since 2019 was a major accomplishment in itself.

Port Jefferson won, 25-14, 25-13, 25-13. The Royals (18-2) will meet Section I champion John Jay-Cross River H.S. in the sub-regionals on Wednesday, Nov. 12 at 4:30 p.m.

“I thought the team as a whole played good,” Greenport head coach Martin Maningo said. “We worked hard these past two weeks, watched a lot of film and studied our game, as well as Port Jeff’s. We came in with a game plan and stuck to it. We made enough simple errors that we would love to have back, but the defensive things we worked on in practice, like blocks and digs, really showed tonight.”

Greenport finished at 6-2 in League VIII and 7-7 overall.

“We tried our hardest,” junior co-captain Abbi Bednoski said. “We made our goal of making playoffs for the first time in six years. We fought super hard. We’re really a young team. We have eighth-graders who start. It was a good season. I’m proud of the girls.”

So was junior co-captain Riley Whitecavage.

“We couldn’t ask for anything else,” she said. “They’re definitely one of the toughest opponents that we go against. I feel our team did very well against them. We usually struggle a little bit. We definitely stepped it up a lot today.”

Those two eighth-graders were Lauryn Bednoski, Abbi’s younger sister, and Lyla Zablotny.

The Porters entered the post-season on a high, winning four of their last six matches.

“The team had its ups and downs this season,” Maningo said. “But we found our groove late in the season. Girls stepped up and took on more responsibilities. We switched liberos and started senior Barbara Mantzopoulos the past two weeks. She really showed her skills and hustle tonight with how many digs she had.

“These girls are great to work with,” he continued. “When we were reviewing film of our own game, they took the criticism very well and in a purely educational way, which I believe helped us quite a bit.”

The Royals are a well-oiled machine. They won both their regular-season matches against Greenport, while going 8-0 in the league, losing only two sets.

“They come out with tricks every time the ball goes on their side of the net,” said Abbi Bednoski. “They help me with things that I can work into my play. Same with the rest of the girls on the team. They’re a well-rounded group of girls. They’re coached very well. I enjoy playing them because, genuinely, it just makes us a better team.”

Royals senior McKayla Pollard paced the Royals with 15 kills. Sophomore Sara Puopolo contributed nine kills and 12 digs. Junior Ava Reilly added four kills, 31 assists and 12 digs.

“We definitely learned how to study how they play more,” Whitecavage said. “Sometimes the teams are just all over the place. They’re definitely more tactical. We have to really figure out how to work as a team and just make sure that we’re talking to each other.”

For Greenport, Abbi Bednoski finished with five kills and nine digs, while Whitecavage collected three kills and five digs. Lauryn Bednoski finished with six assists and six digs. Zablotny recorded an ace, one kill, two blocks and a dig. Junior Addison Watson contributed a season-high seven blocks. Junior Lilou Zugmeyer registered an assist and three blocks, Mantzopoulos added two assists and 11 digs. Junior Caroline Woods had one kill and one dig.

“We really focused on our defense these past two weeks leading to Port Jeff, so seeing Addison Watson have seven blocks and Barbara Mantzopoulos with 11 digs after a tough loss, does make the coaches feel good about how the team as a whole prepared,” Maningo said.

The Porters have much to look forward to next year. They will lose four seniors, including one starter, Mantzopoulos, to graduation. But they have virtually their entire team returning.

“Making it this far is going to give us that idea that we know we can make it this far … next year,” Abbi Bednoski said. “We’re going to play even better. More girls are going to have more experience. The energy we have in the court is going to carry over into next season.”