Porters girls volleyball sweeps Shelter Island for festive Homecoming

Calling it an incredible season for the Greenport/Southold girls volleyball team would be an understatement.

Last year was a breakthrough campaign, as the squad qualified for the Suffolk County playoffs for the first time in seven years. The Porters have soared into a much higher orbit this year, becoming a League VIII power.

They defeated Shelter Island in three sets, 25-6, 25-13, 25-10, to tip off Homecoming Friday and complete the regular season in style.

“I was honestly impressed,” head coach Martin Maningo said. “It’s always good when you can get the entire team in the game. All 13 girls just work hard every day in practice, and all 13 showed it on the court. They all made great plays; they were all involved. They all got on the stat sheet.”

The Porters (13-2, 8-2) worked well together, using their positioning and teamwork to set up attacks and keep the opposition from scoring.

“What I was impressed with most was that if the pass wasn’t perfect or if the set wasn’t perfect, our hitters or our setters made the right adjustments and made smart plays,” Maningo said. “That’s something we really preach and practice into every game: to just be the smartest volleyball players that we can be.”

It also helps that the athletes know each other well. The bulk of last year’s squad returned this season.

“We have the same starting six as we did last year,” senior co-captain Abbi Bednoski said. “We put in a lot of work in the offseason, coming to open gyms and really connecting with each other to be able to have that connection on the court. We’re all best friends. We really get along together.”

“It’s having a team full of selfless players,” Maningo said.

The Porters’ core includes four seniors and three freshmen. The seniors are co-captains Riley Whitecavage and Bednoski, Caroline Woods, and Lilou Zugmeyer. The freshmen are Lauryn Bednoski, Lyla Zablotny, and Delphine Garcia.

Every player brings something different to the court.

Take, for example, the first set against the Indians (0-15, 0-10).

With Greenport leading, 3-2, Whitecavage produced 12 consecutive points on serves, including four aces, en route to a 15-2 advantage. She finished with seven aces.

Every time Whitecavage recorded an ace, the reserves on the sidelines shouted, “One, two, three! Ace!” They did it for every player who earned one.

“Our whole team has energy and is high up and is cheering for everything,” Whitecavage said. “It’s always good whenever there’s a lot of sound on the court.”

Zablotny, who finished with a game-high 11 kills, credited her teammates.

“Being a lefty middle has made it harder,” she said. “My setters, I give them a lot of credit. They learn to put it to my left hand.”

The Bednoski sisters also were productive. Lauryn finished with eight kills and two assists. Abbi had five kills and five aces.

“She definitely pushes me to be the best I can be and always is trying to help me and make myself better so that it can be better for the team,” Lauryn said. “She always has my back, and I always have hers.”

Greenport already has booked a home semifinal against Mattituck during the week of Oct. 26. The Porters have beaten their rivals twice this season. That included a 25-21, 25-23, 17-25, 25-19 win on Oct. 14.

The Porters’ nemesis is defending Class C champion Port Jefferson (19-1, 11-0), which has defeated Greenport twice this season.

The semifinal winner will meet Port Jefferson. The defending county champions have dropped only five sets this season: in a 3-2 defeat to Ward Melville and a 3-2 win over Bayport-Blue Point.

“I think every single person on our team knows that we have what it takes to beat them,” Whitecavage said. “The only difference is that they’re a very fast-paced team and we don’t have much of that. We’re working on fast pace and moving quickly.”

Added Maningo: “We’re studying as much film as we can on ourselves, on Port Jeff. We’re finding our weaknesses, and we’re addressing those in practice.  It’s really a reflection on our own commitments, change, and adapt the way that we play so that we can stand up against Port Jeff. There’s a reason they’re league champs four years in a row.”