Boys Volleyball Crushes Choate Rosemary Hall
By TEDDY CAPOZZI, LANG GOU and ERIN HAN
On Saturday, April 22, the boys varsity volleyball team swept Choate 3 to 0, an over- whelming victory at home. Contributing to their 3-1 record, with their only loss to Andover.
Despite this win, senior captain Rodrigo Spinola e Castro believes the win was a poor reflection of the team. “Choate is a team that we know we can beat pretty easily, to the point where the fact that they almost got sets on us because we almost lost to ourselves.”
The team looks ahead for injured players, captain Andy Horrigan and Upper Olisa Nwogugu, to return to play. “Andy is the soul of the team. He keeps us up during games. He keeps our spirit up. He’s always having fun, making us have fun. He makes volleyball somewhere people want to go,” said Spinola e Castro.
Upper Gunn Sukhum spoke on the impact each captain has had this year. “The captains, Andy and Rodrigo, have been the most important part of volleyball for me... they keep the energy high both in matches and in practice and always cheer us up when we make a mistake. I’m very thankful to have Andy and Rodrigo lead our team this year.”
Upper Nicholas Lin added, “Both our cap- tains never disappoint. They stay vocal and pick everyone on the team up when they make a mistake. But what they did best was lead by example. When put in a bad spot, they would always somehow keep the ball in play, and when they get their chances, they kill it.”
Despite this unsat- isfactory performance, Spinola e Castro still has a few highlights. He de- scribed the performance of senior Ty Dieberg, a new member of the volleyball team, as a “big highlight.” He believed that players like Dieberg stepping up to fill in the roles of Horrigan and Nwogugu contributed in a significant way to the success of the team. That is not always easy, however. “Filling in the shoes of two of our best players is one of the toughest challenges for the team,” said Sukhum.
As for the future of the team, things are looking very bright. The team is working hard, and Horrigan and Nwogugu are working with the trainers to make speedy recoveries and return to the court. The next big event for the team is EA, which will be a home game this year. The whole team is excited about it, but Sukhum summarizes the team's feelings well. “We are hoping for a healthy and exciting EA match at home this year on May 3rd. We appreciate everyone watching our games, and the cheer energy does radiate into the court.”
