News, Updates, and More.
Player Spotlight: Kyle Shaffer
Shaffer Commits to NCAA DI, Lewis University
Kyle Shaffer, a setter on the Boys 18 Red team has committed to Lewis University.
Shaffer is a Senior at Smithtown East High School and is looking forward to the opportunity to playing on the NCAA D1 Volleyball Program.
Please join us in congratulating Kyle on his achievement and wish him luck on his continued success.
Girls GEVA & Boys FloridaFest Results are In!
The first weekend in February was an active one for the Boys and Girls teams at Academy Volleyball. Many of the girls teams competed regionally in GEVA tournaments, while the boys 16, 17, and 18 Red teams travelled to Jacksonville Florida for the 2018 FloridaFest. See below for more.
Girls GEVA Results
See below for the results of the girls GEVA Regional tournament:
12 Red - finished 3rd in their pool, won playoff bracket over Sporttime (25-22-25-18)
13 Red - finished 4th in their pool, won playoff bracket over LIVBC 15 Blue (19-25, 25-14, 15-5)
14 Red - finished 2nd in their pool, won playoff round over Princeton (25-13, 23-25, 15-4)
14 White - finished 3rd in their pool, won playoff round over Allegro National (26-24, 25-21)
15 Red - finished 2nd in their pool, won playoff round over Princeton (25-18, 25-13)
15 White North - finished 2nd in their pool
15 White South - finished 3rd in their pool, won playoff round over OCVBC (26-24, 25-23)
16 Red - finished 4th in their pool, won opening round of playoffs over Downstate Black (25-17,25-21), lost to Academy 17 Red in playoff final.
17 Red - finished 3rd in pool, won playoff bracket over Academy 16 Red (16-25,25-16,18-16)
17 White - finished 1st in their pool, won playoff round over DIGS (25-23,25-21)
Sunshine & Volleyball at the 2018 FloridaFest
February usually means more snow and cold weather, but for the boys 16, 17, and 18 Red teams, it also meant to break out the shorts for a weekend as they headed down to Jacksonville, Florida for the 2018 FloridaFest. See below for more:
16 Red
A last minute addition to the tournament placed the Boys 16 Red team in one of the most competitive pools to open the tournament with. They started out with a win over Miami United (25-14, 25-9), then dropped the next three matches to RVC, Ponce, and Infinity. They closed out the day with a play-in match win over A5 (19-25, 25-17, 15-12).
On the final day of the tournament, the boys competed in the Bronze playoff bracket where they defeated Pipeline Nike in straight sets in the first round (25-23, 26-24) before falling to High Performance St. Louis in the second round.
17 Red
The Boys 17 Red team was red hot on the first day of the tournament as they picked up 4 wins over Toreros Coastal (25-22, 25-23), RVC (25-23, 25-13), Warren Sixpak (25-15, 25-14), and Infinity (25-17, 21-25, 15-5).
Their undefeated first day of pool play earned them a spot in the Gold playoff bracket, where they fell in the opening round to Team Rockstar (California) in straight sets.
The boys finished in 5th place overall.
18 Red
The Boys 18 Red team continued their winning ways at the FloridaFest as they went 2-1 during the opening day of pool play - picking up wins over Vanguard (25-16, 25-23) and Coastal Toreros (25-14, 25-8).
On the second day of the tournament, the boys picked up a win in their play-in match over Pipeline Nike (25-18, 26-28, 15-11) to qualify for the Gold playoff bracket. In the Gold, the boys picked up a win over CVC Onslaught in the first round (25-17, 22-25, 15-13) before falling to MVP Academy in the second round (25-23, 20-25, 18-16).
The boys finished in 3rd place overall (out of 36 teams).
MAPL, Nook, and GEVA Tournament Wrap UP.
The first month of the 2018 club volleyball season is coming to a close and there were a few teams in action to wrap things up. The girls 15, 16, and 17 Red teams were down in Hampton, VA for the competitive Mid-Atlantic Power Leauge (MAPL) tournament.
Meanwhile, in Manheim, PA the Boys 14 Red team competed in thier first-ever tournament. Last, but not least, the girls 18 Red, 18 White North, and 18 White South teams were in the tri-state area, competing in GEVA tournaments.
GEVA 18s
All three 18s teams were in action in the tristate area this past weekend. The 18 White South was at the Diamond Sports Center in New Jesey, while the 18 Red and 18 White North competed at the Downstate Athletic Center.
At the Downstate Athletic Center, it was an all-Academy affair as the 18 Red team won the tournament and the 18 White North team finished second. Great job by all of our 18s!
BOYS 14 RED COMPETES IN FIRST TOURNAMENT.
The Boys 14 Red team competed in their first-ever tournament, the Nook Winterfest, in Manheim, PA this past weekend.
It was a great start to their club careers as they boys went 5-3 in pool play and qualified for the Gold playoff bracket. In the Gold bracket, the boys defeated the Trojan Volleyball Club in the first round and advanced to the finals. In the finals, the boys defeated Prevail for the tournament win!
Mid-Atlantic Power League Tournament ReCap.
The Girls 15, 16, and 17 Red teams traveled down to Hampton Roads, VA to compete in the Mid-Atlantic Power League tournament. This tournament always draws tough competition and is a good test for the Academy girls.
15 Red
The 15 Red opened the tournament by going 3-2 in pool play. After dropping a very close match to Brandywine (26-28, 21-25), the girls picked up wins over CORE and EC Power.
On the second day of pool play, the girls dropped a match to
Triangle to start the day. They qualified for the Bronze playoff bracket, where they fell to CJVA in three sets (13-25, 25-12, 15-9).
16 Red
The 16 Red started off the tournament on a hot streak as they won the first three matches they played, defeating MDJRS, Metro, and Deleware United - all in straight sets, befor dropping their last match of the day to BRYC.
On the second day of the tournament, the girls picked up a win over TCVA in straigt sets (25-15, 25-22), which set them up for the "Copper A" playoff bracket. In the Copper A, the girls defeated Coastal in the first round in straight sets (25-13, 25-20). That win advanced the girls to the finals where they defeated the Brandywine Bobcats in three sets (25-16, 18-25, 15-12).
17 Red
The 17 Red had a busy first day as they competed in five matches. They began with three straight victories, defeating Delaware, Triangle, and MDJRs before dropping a match to American. The girls had to play in a one-set challenge match to determine the following days' brackets. In that match, they fell to the MDJRs.
On the second day of the tournament, the girls went 2-0 in their next bracket as they picked up wins over the Triangle 18s and the VA Juniors. With those two victories, the girls qualified for the Copper A playoff bracket. In the Copper A bracket, the girls defeated the Triangle 17s in straight sets (25-19, 25-19). That win sent them to the Copper A finals, where they defeated the FJVC in three sets (25-23, 14-25, 15-10).
Congratulations to all three of our teams who competed in the MAPL tournament.
NEXT UP FOR ACADEMY:
Next up for Academy will find a majority of the girls teams competing in GEVA tournaments during the first weekend in February, while the boys 16, 17, and 18 Red teams will head down to Jacksonville, FL for the 2018 Boys FloridaFest.
Later on in February, the girls will be heading to Washington D.C. for the Capitol Hill Classic and the Boys will head to Harrisburg, PA for the Boys Atlantic Northeastern Championships (BANE).
Academy Volleyball: Player Spotlight
Welcome to another edtion of the Academy Volleyball Player Spotlight. In this edition we're pleased to announce that Kara Haase [link] has committed to Merrimack College and Mackenzie Cole [link] has been named the Gatorade Player of the Year for the state of New York!
Please see below for more information on their outstanding accomplishments!
Kara Haase Commits to Merimack College
Kara Haase of Academy Volleyball's 18 White South team has committed to play volleyball at Merrimack College (NCAA D-II) next year.
Besides Academy, Kara also played at Kings Park High School and competed in the New York State Championships three times.
Twice her team finished in 3rd place, another year they finished as New York State Runner-Up.
Kara is really looking forward to playing at Merrimack next year and all of us at Academy Volleyball wish her the best of luck!
Cole Named Gatorade Player of the Year for New York State
Academy Volleyball player, Mackenzie Cole, has been named the 2017-18 New York State Gatorade Player of the Year for the sport of girls volleyball.
The Gatorade State Player of the Year award was established in 1985 to recognize the nation’s most outstanding high school student-athletes for their athletic excellence, academic achievement and exemplary character.
This is a tremendous honor as Cole is being recognized not only for her on-court efforts, but her community service off the court. Please visit Gatorade's website to learn more about this special achievement.
Academy Teams Open Major Tournaments in Chicago and Pennsylvania
On the weekend of January 13-15, 2018, Academy Volleyball teams participated in the first "major" tournaments of this club season. This year all of the boys teams travelled to Chicago to compete in the Boys Winter Championships. The girls 18 Red team also travelled to Chicago to compete in the Girls Winter Championships, which runs concurrently to the boys tournament in the same venue - a rare opportunity to have both boys and girls teams from Academy to compete at the same time.
At the same time as those teams were in Chicago, the girls 13-18 teams were in King of Prussia, PA competing in the East Coast Power (ECP) Invitational.
With nearly all Academy teams playing this weekend, there is plenty of action to go around. See below for a quick recap of all the action.
Sweet Home Chicago
GIRLS 18 RED
The girls opened the tournament on the first day with a record of 1-2, they dropped matches to the Milwaukee Sting and ESVBC, while picking up a straight-set victory over Spiral 18s (Arizona) by a score of 25-23, 25-16. However, since Milwaukee was the only team in the pool to go undefeated and the remaining teams having an identical 1-2 record, the #2 and #3 teams (including Academy Girls 18 Red) had to play a one-set match against each other to determine the following day's pool.
In that match the Academy Girls 18 Red defeated Spiral 18s once again by a score of 25-23. On the second day of the tournament, the girls dropped matches to Metro and Rage, which placed them in the Silver bracket on the final day of the tournament. The girls dropped their first match in the Silver bracket against Michio Chicago and finished the tournament in 9th place overall.
BOYS 15s
Chicago was a big tournament for the 15s. For many of them, this is their first time competing in a tournament of this magnitude.
On their first day of the tournament, the Boys 15 Red went 1-2 dropping matches to SPVB and Serve City. They picked up a win in straight sets over the Missouri Thunder (26-24, 25-14). On the second day of the tournament, the boys finished in first place in their pool by going 3-1, picking up wins over Epic, CVC, and Chicago Ultimate, while dropping a match to WVA Nightmares. The boys closed the tournament by falling to Pipeline in their playoff bracket.
The Boys 15 White opened their tournament with a record of 1-3 during their first day of pool play, picking up a win over the Chicago Bounce in two straight sets (25-21, 25-19). However, they tied with two other teams in their bracket who also had 1-3 records. Because of this, the boys had to play two additional matches on the first day against MOJO (Florida) and Chicago Bounce, in order to determine their pool for the second day. The boys split the matches, picking up a win over MOJO.
On the second day of the tournament the boys went 2-1, picking up wins over Serve City (25-23, 25-17) and SWVBC - including an epic first set win - (30-28, 25-22). The boys dropped their playoff match on the last day of the tournament to Pipeline in three sets (17-25, 25-23, 15-7)
Great first tournament by both 15s teams!
BOYS 16s
The Boys 16 Red team found themselves in one of the toughest pools on the opening day of the tournament as they drew both 949 (from Southern California) and RVC (Virginia). The boys played them both tough, but ultimately fell in straight sets.
Boys 16 Red attends an NCAA DI match (Loyola vs. Long Beach State)
Despite closing out the day with a record of 1-2 (dropping them out of contention for the medal rounds), the boys remained focused and came back on the second day and winning all three of their matches - picking up wins over Edge, D1 Elite, and Vortex.
On the last day of the tournament, the boys continued where they left off the day before by picking up a win over Southport in straight sets (26-24, 25-22), then falling to the Milwaukee Sting in their playoff match in three sets (27-25, 15-25, 13-25).
The Boys 16 White team also drew a very tough pool on the first day of the tournament as they faced SPVB, Bay to Bay, and the Chicago Hitmen, dropping all three matches. The boys remained resilient on the second day of the tournament - where they also drew a particularly tough schedule. For the day the boys went 1-2, picking up a big win over Motion Volleyball in two sets (25-16, 26-24).
On the last day of the tournament, the boys picked up a win over the D1 Elite in three sets (25-22, 23-25, 15-8) before dropping a match to the Cyclones.
BOYS 17 RED
The Boys 17 Red team entered the Chicago tournament looking to build off the success they had last year as 16 year olds. Things started out well for the boys as they went 2-1 during the first day of pool play, picking up wins over TVP (25-13, 25-9) and Club 1 (25-18, 22-25, 16-14).
The second day of the tournament brought on a tough challenge for the boys as they went 1-2, dropping matches to AZ Fear (Arizona) and MVVC (Northern California), while earning a win over the Cincinatti Attack (25-19, 25-16).
For their play, the 17 Red earned a spot in the Silver playoff bracket, where they defeated Vanguard in the first round (25-16, 25-13), before falling to the eventual bracket winner Ocean Bay in three sets. Overall the boys finished 12th out of 47 teams - and earned their bid to the 2018 Boys Junior National Championships! Congratulations to the Boys 17 Red on a great tournament.
BOYS 18s
The Boys 18 White team opened the tournament against D1 Elite, SPVB Elite, and the AZ Fear (Arizona). The boys played great during the entire opening round, however they ultimately dropped all matches during the opening round.
The second day of the tournament the boys dropped a match to another SPVB team before picking up a win over D1 Elite in two straight sets (25-19, 25-20). Closing out the day, the boys dropped a match to LIVBC and went 1-2 on the day.
On the last day of the tournament, the boys faced the Cincinnati Attack in the opening round of their playoff bracket. The match featured a lot of action, with the Boys 18 White pulling out a three set victory (25-23, 23-25, 15-10). The boys dropped their next match in the playoff round to the WS Storm.
The Boys 18 Red team has a mix of old and new faces and together they form one of the most dominant squads in the region. This was evident as the boys swept their opening day of the tournament by winning all three matches - picking up wins over the Attack, SPVB, and MVP Academy all in straight sets! On the second day of the tournament the boys went undefeated in their pool, picking up wins over Orlando Gold (29-27, 29-31, 25-21) and Adversity Purple (25-23, 26-24, 19-25).
From there, the boys had to play in a challenge match for playoff bracket seeding. The boys while dropped their challenge match to SPVB Elite. From there the boys 18 Red earned a spot in the Silver Playoff bracket. The boys opened the playoff bracket by defeating the Milwaukee Sting in two straight sets (25-22, 25-22). They then faced Ultimate Gold, who they defeated in three sets (26-24, 18-25, 15-12).
The win over Ultimate Gold sent the boys in to the Silver bracket finals against Adversity Purple. The boys defeated Adversity Purple in straight sets (25-20, 25-15) to win the Silver bracket. The boys finished the tournament in 9th place out of 57 teams - great job!
ECP Invitational
Meanwhile, southeast of Chicago, the Academy girls where in King of Prussia, PA to compete in the ECP Invitational - a high-level tournament.
13 RED
The 13 Red had a fantastic start to their first major tournament of the season. On the first day of the tournament, the girls went 2-2 as they dropped matches to Metro and PGH Elite - and posted victories over EC Power Sky (16-25, 25-15, 15-7) and EC Power Galaxy (25-14, 25-19).
On the second day of the tournament, the girls went 1-1, picking up a win over Brandywine Backlash (25-16, 25-23). From there the girls advanced to the Gold playoff bracket where they dropped a match to the NYC Juniors. Overall the Girls 13 Red finished in 3rd place - nice work!
GIRLS 14s
The Girls 14 Red team came out strong on the first day of the tournament by jumping out to a 3-1 record, picking up wins over CJVA, PGH Elite, and EC Power. Their only loss on the day came from the Brandywine BAM. The girls carried that momentum in to the second day as they advanced to the Gold playoff bracket. They picked up a win over EC Power Iceberg (25-17, 25-23) before falling to the NYC Juniors and Metro.
The Girls 14 White team had a tough first day as they dropped matches to the NYC Juniors, EC Power Iceberg, and Metro clubs. They did pick up a nice win over AVVC (25-23, 25-12). The girls advanced to the Silver playoff bracket where they picked up another win over the AVVC club before falling to CJVA and PGH Elite.
GIRLS 15s
The Girls 15 White North team had a tough first day as they dropped their matches during pool play. On the second day, the girls rebounded with a win over AVVC in three sets (25-18, 18-25, 15-6). In their second match, the fell to the NYC Juniors. However in their playoff bracket, the girls defeated the EC Power Dynamic in straight sets (25-22, 25-17).
The Girls 15 Red team opened the ECP Invitational with a record of 3-1 during the first day of pool play. After dropping their opening match to CJVA, the girls defeated EC Power Dynamic (25-20, 25-22), Brandywine Bobcats (25-22, 23-25, 15-9) , and the NYC Juniors Blue (22-25, 25-8, 15-8). On the second day of the tournament the girls dropped two matches to two EC Power teams (True & Mystic). In their playoff bracket, they faced the PGH Elite, who they defeated in straight sets (25-19, 25-17).
GIRLS 16s
The Girls 16 White North team opened the tournament with a record of 1-3 during the first day of pool play. They picked up a nice win over CJVA in three sets (22-25, 25-23, 15-11). On the second day of the tournament, the girls earned a spot in the Bronze playoff bracket, where they defeated AVVC in straight sets in the first round (25-20, 25-15). From there the girls advanced to the finals, where they defeated DIGS in straight sets (25-20, 25-22).
The Girls 16 Red team opened the tournament by defeating AVVC in straight sets (25-13, 25-18) before falling to EC Power and Metro. On the second day of the tournament, they girls picked up a win over DIGS in straight sets (25-17, 25-11), then advanced to the Silver playoff bracket. The girls fell to the PGH Elite in three sets (25-18, 20-25, 15-13) in the opening round. They girls then played in a Silver bracket seeding match vs. EC Power Federal, which they won in three sets (18-25, 25-17, 15-9).
GIRLS 17s
The 17 year old age group is always one of the toughest age groups to compete in. Both the 17 Red and the 17 White teams faced some very difficult competition at this tournament. Both teams played hard throughout the tournament and, in the end, it was a sibling rivalry as both the Red and the White teams faced each other in their playoff bracket. In this match, the Red team came out on top with a straight sets victory over the White team (25-21, 25-22).
GIRLS 18s
Also playing in a tough age group is the 18s. For the Girls 18 White South, the ECP Invitational is a great opportunity to see some of the toughest teams in the region and a chance to further develop as volleyball players. They most certainly did that as they earned a spot in the Bronze playoff bracket. In the Bronze, they feel to the NYC Juniors in straight sets.
The Girls 18 White North team opened the tournament with a 3-1 record as they picked up wins over EC Power Royal (17-25, 25-23, 20-18), NYC Juniors (25-22, 25-11), and AVVC (25-13, 25-19). On the second day of the tournament, the girls dropped a match to the EC Power Sapphire.
With a pool play record of 3-2, the girls qualified for the Silver playoff bracket, where they dropped a match to the EC Power Regal in straight sets. In the second round of the bracket, the girls played a seeding match with DIGS, which they won in straight sets - including a second set thriller that went in to extra points (25-13, 29-27).
Congratulations to all Academy teams for competing in the first major tournament of the season!
COMING UP FOR ACADEMY
Next up for the Academy Girls teams are a few GEVA tournaments followed by the Mid-Atlantic Power Leauge in Hampton Virginia on January 27-28 and the Capitol Hill Classic in Washington DC in February.
For the boys, the Red teams will be traveling to Jacksonville Florida to compete in the Florida Fest. Then, later in February, all boys teams will head to Harrisburg, PA to compete in the Boys Atlantic Northeastern (BANE) tournament.
Academy Player Spotlight
Throughout the season, All Things ACAD looks to share the news and achievements of Academy athletes. For the first entry of the 2018 season, please see below to learn about Jason Koehler of our Boys 18 Red team and Lauren Wong of our Girls 16 White-North team.
Jason Koehler, Boys 18 Red
Jason Koehler, a Middle on the Boys 18 Red team and Lindenhurst High School Senior, recently committed to Springfield College (last year's NCAA D-III National Champion). See Below for Jason's highlights:
- 4 Year Varsity Player/Starter Lindenhurst High School
Named All-County (Suffolk) (3x)
Named All-County Tournament Team (3x)
All-Long Island First Team (2x)
Lindenhurst MVP Boys Varsity Volleyball (2x)
Newsday Top 10 Player for Long Island (2x)
Newsday Top 25 Player for Long Island
GEVA USA High Performance Team (2x)
Lauren Wong, 16 White North
Congratulations to Lauren Wong on her outstanding rookie season on the Holy Trinity Girls Varsity Volleyball team.
- Led conference with 362 Digs (4.64/set)
- Led conference .962 serve receive
- All tournament honors in both tournaments Holy Trinity competed in 2017.
- Named to All-Conference team
- 2017 Libero of the Year
- 2017 Rookie of the Year
Commit to a College? Win a Special Award? Make sure you let us know. Periodically, throughout the season, we will would like to feature it here. Make sure you let a coach or director know. You can also let us know here.
Academy Boys Earn Suffolk High School Honors
On December 11, 2017 the Suffolk County Boys Volleyball Association held their annual awards banquet. Many of the Academy boys athletes earned some well-deserved recognition for the hard work they put in during the season. See below for more.
Brennen Brandow
Suffolk County Player of the Year/ Tournament MVP
AJ Fitzgerald & Dan Shanley
Rookie of the Year
Bryan Kaplan & Trey Cole
Libero of the Year
Nick Mazzaro
Academic Elite
Matthew Rivera & Matthew DiStefano
Varsity Coach of the Year
ALL-COUNTY
Trey Cole, Connetquot
Brennen Brandow, Eastport South Manor
Tyler Plitt, Eastport South Manor
Quinn Foglia, Eastport South Manor
Jason Koehler, Lindenhurst
Troy VonHolt, Lindenhurst
Ben Sandt, Northport
Andrew Watts, Northport
Gavin Quiery, Sachem East
Alec Lehnert, Sachem North
Connor Pallmann, Sachem North
Jack Driscoll, Sachem North
Daniel LaRosa, Sachem North
A.J. Fitzgerald, Sachem North
Kyle Shaffer, Smithtown East
Bryan Kaplan, Smithtown East
Chris Shanley, Smithtown West
Kevin Kelleher, Smithtown West
Jack Poplawski, Walt Whitman
Sean Williams, Walt Whitman
ALL-COUNTY TOURNAMENT
Tyler Plitt, ESM
Quinn Foglia, ESM
Jason Koehler, Lindenhurst
Andrew Watts, Northport
AJ Fitzgerald, Sachem North
Alec Lehnert, Sachem North
Daniel LaRosa, Sachem North
Connor Pallmann, Sachem North
Bryan Kaplan, Smithtown East
Kyle Shaffer, Smithtown East
Chris Shanley, Smithtown West
Kevin Kelleher, Smithtown West
Jack Poplawski, Walt Whitman
Sean Williams, Walt Whitman
ALL-COUNTY ACADEMIC
Nicholas Mazzaro, Connetquot
Alec Lehnert, Sachem North
Daniel LaRosa, Sachem NortH
Tyler Brunquell, Sachem North
Kyle Shaffer, Smithtown East
Kevin Kelleher, Smithtown West
Christopher Shanley, Smithtown West
ALL-DIVISION
Nick Mazzaro, Connetquot
Brandon Kelly, Eastport South Manor
Dominic Pikura, Lindenhurst
Matthew Russo, Sachem North
Josh George, Ward Melville
DesLauriers Named 2017 NCAA II National Coach of the Year
Academy Volleyball is extremely proud to announce that Molloy Lions Womens' Volleyball Head Coach, Kevin DesLauriers, has been named the 2017 United States Marine Corp/AVCA NCAA II National Coach of the Year. DesLauriers is Academy Volleyball's Head Director and Head Coach of the Girls 16 Red team.
Previously DesLauriers had been named the ECC/Eastern Region Coach of the Year and is now being recognized nationally for the historic turnaround he orchestrated for the Molloy Lions Women's Volleyball program. DesLauriers will also be featured at the Jostens Coaches Honors Luncheon during the American Volleyball Coaches Association Convention on December 14, 2017 in Kansas City, Missouri.
To read more about the outstanding coaching job by DesLauriers please read our previous post. Below are the some of the highlights from Coach DesLauriers amazing season:
- First season as the Molloy Lions Women's Volleyball Head Coach
- 26-6 overall record and 12-2 in the East Coast Conference (an amazing turnaround from the previous season's record of 6-25)
- Nearly quadrupled the team’s number of wins from 2016
- Earned the No. 2 seed in the NCAA East Regional
- Won the Molloy Lions Womens' Volleyball program’s first ever ECC Championship
- Led the conference in kills per set (13.36) and assists per set (12.52)
- Advanced to the NCAA East Regional Semifinal
- Also serves as the Assistant Athletic Director for Operations
For more information on DesLauriers honor, please visit the Molloy Lions website as well as the AVCA website.
NOTEWORTHY
Academy Volleyball will be well represented at this year's American Volleyball Coaches Association Convention in Kansas City, Missouri in December 2017. Not only will Coach DesLauriers be featured at the Jostens Coaches Honors Luncheon, but Academy athlete, Mackenzie Cole (18 Red), will also compete in the Under Armour Girls High School All-American Match, which also takes place at the convention. For more details on that match, please read our previous post.
* photos/video courtesey of Molloy College Athletics.
Academy Athletes Make Newsdays' "All Long Island" teams.
Academy Volleyball would like to acknowledge and congratulate it's athletes who have been recognized by Newsday for their play during this past varsity season. Being named by the Newsday sports writers to their "All Long Island" teams is a special accomplishment. Please see below for all Academy Athletes that have been recognized.
BOYS FIRST TEAM ALL-LONG ISLAND
Brennen Brandow
Long Island Player of the Year, 2017
“With a vertical that makes it seem like he’s floating in midair, Brandow surveyed defenses all season to find weak spots. When he found them, he exploited them time and time again.”
Timothy Drake
“A powerful hitter and server, Drake was a force for the Chiefs, who won a county title.”
Jason Koehler
“An excellent overall player, he amassed over 200 kills as a middle and hurt defenses with a jump-serve that’s difficult to receive.”
Dan LaRosa
“Long Island’s top libero this fall was the catalyst for the Flaming Arrows, turning defense into a potent offense.”
Conner Pallmann
“He posted a team-high 209 kills and 37 aces for the Flaming Arrows.”
Kyle Shaffer
“He led the fifth-seeded Bulls to the county semifinals as both a setter and hitter.”
Chris Shanley
“Shanley was a threat each game to produce double-digit totals in kills and digs.”
BOYS SECOND TEAM ALL-LONG ISLAND
- Jack Driscoll
- Quinn Foglia
- Kevin Kelleher
- Jack Poplawski
GIRLS FIRST TEAM ALL-LONG ISLAND
Mackenzie Cole
Long Island Player of the Year, 2017
“She’s been a six-year varsity starter,” he said. “She’s never once, not one single time, missed a practice. Even when she’s sick, she’s come and sat in the corner because she refuses to miss a practice.”
Julia Beckmann
Nassau County Player of the Year, 2017
“She plays all-around,” she said. “There’s nothing that she can’t do.”
Mia Cergol
“As versatile a player as there is on Long Island, she was a threat to post double digits in kills, digs and assists in any match.”
Kathleen Doherty
“The on-court leader used a big swing and sound defense to lead the Chiefs to yet another successful season.”
Nicole Migliozi
“One of the most consistent setters on Long Island, she racked up 809 assists and will play at Quinnipiac.”
Cassandra Patsos
“The Iona commit led the team in kills (347) and blocks (96) and paced the T-Birds in the state tournament.”
Grace Rosenberg
“A fantastic two-way player, her setting and hitting was integral in the Marines’ county final victory over Massapequa.”
USA Volleyball High Performance Tryout Dates Now Available.
Tryout dates and locations have been posted by USA Volleyball for their respective Boys and Girls High Performance Program.
For those who are new to club and USA Volleyball, the High Performance program is organizied by USA Volleyball to identify talent from across the country. As such, tryouts are held in various locations throughout the country during the course of the club season. The ultimate goal of the program is to identify and develop athletes that will eventually feed in to their National and Olympic programs.
Tryouts are open to everyone and, if you are selected, USA Volleyball offer excellent options that will provide quality instruction from college-level coaches as well as excellent opportunities to grow in both athletics and charachter. Some programs offered by USA Volleyball are high-level camps only, while others offer the ability to compete in the USA Volleyball High Performance Championship Tournament during the summer of 2018.
See our post from the Summer of 2017 to get a sense of the experiences that some of our athletes had at the High Performance Championships this past year (both for Team USA and for GEVA High Performance).
If you are interested in attending a tryout, please click on the link below.