Volleyball Makes History
The inaugural season for Exeter boys’ volleyball came to an end on Sunday with a loss to Choate. They dropped the match 3-1 with their lone game won coming in the second set.
The team finished the season with a record of four wins and five losses.
Going into the match, the team was confident after coming off of a hot streak from the previous weekend. They defeated WMA and Andover with both results ending at 2-1. There was confidence among the group, but there was also a bit of nervousness going into the tournament. Their strategy against Choate was simple.
“We were going to key on their big hitter with a double or triple block,” prep Graham Rutledge said. The team hoped that by taking away Choate’s big hitter, they would only have to deal with tips from the others.
The team put all their effort out on the court. “We left it all out there,” lower Max Kirsch said. But unfortunately, Exeter made too many mistakes, costing them the victory.
Despite losing out on a chance to play in the title game, the season was not a complete wash. Out of the fourteen players on the team, only four were seniors. “Even before spring break, the majority of kids didn’t know how to pass a ball or how to even set a ball,” senior Kevin Flynn said.
On that basis alone, the team improved greatly. “Next year we have some new players coming in that will bring experience, but there are guys like [prep] Mitchell Kirsch who were starting to really dominate by the end of the year,” Rutledge added.
The younger Kirsch will not be the only one to have an increased role next year as his brother, Max, prep Kelvin Green, lower Tim Wu, and upper Andrew Poggione should also be large factors for the team. “I only expect great things from them,” Flynn said.
This season, senior Alec Hernandez was by far the leader of the team. Not only was he elected captain, he showed why he was every day on the court.
For each practice, he was one of the first players there and was the first one to set up the nets. “Alec set a great culture in the team that we could bond and flourish,” Rutledge said. He also demonstrated that leading was not his only strength as his play was tremendous, aided by his strong serves.
Although it is still two terms and a summer away, the team cannot help but look forward to next season. They will finally be able to host game next year and can expect a great, supporting fan base. As for how far they could go, Kirsch said, “There’s no telling how much some of these guys will improve over the next year.”