Tewksbury Volleyball Rips Austin Prep

The Tewksbury Memorial High volleyball team was riding high after a successful weekend showing at the Milford tournament, and continued to showcase their abilities Monday night, defeating visiting Austin Prep in straight sets, 25-20, 26-24, and 25-11.  

Tewksbury head coach Jim Ray credited the win heavily to the skillful play of his setters and outside hitters.

"We had our outside hitters hitting really well, that was our meat and potatoes of our offense today," Ray said. "Our passing could be a little tighter in terms of getting the balls to our (middle hitters) but the setters did a fine job of tracking balls down."

Team captains Allie Luppi and Alina Rosmarinofski had outstanding games. Luppi had eight kills, followed by Rosmarinofski with six. Rosmarinofski also had a good night on the serving line, registering seven serving points for the Redmen. 

Rosmarinofski was happy with the effort her team put forth, and feels they won the game on the defensive end. 

"We played really good and picked up our defense a lot," she said. 

Blocking was a big point-earner for the Redmen. Sophomore Kelli Surgrue had three key blocks, each earning a point for her team. 

"(The blocks) were huge for us," Ray said. "They hit well but they also blocked, which is their main job so I was very happy with that." 

The Redmen got off to a strong start in game one. The score was lopsided in the Redmen's favor for most of the game, but the Cougars made a furious comeback, managing to come within just three points of Tewksbury late in the game. Despite their efforts, it was too little too late, and the Redmen took game one 25-20. 

Game two exhibited levelheaded and exceptional volleyball from both teams. The score was tied up eight times throughout the set, including at 24-24. Ray took a time out, and the Redmen came out confident. They took the next point to go up by one, and then capitalized once again with the game on the line. They came out on top 26-24 after a hard-fought battle. 

Game three was less intense than game two, and Tewksbury was able to put the match away with a score of 25-11, improving their record to 3-1. With the loss, Austin Prep drops to 0-3. 

When Austin Prep coach Lou Polan was asked what went wrong in game three, he pointed to his team's lack of focus throughout the entirety of a set.

"It's all mental," Polan said. "We need to work on playing the whole 25 points because we can always come back." 

Tewksbury will try for their second straight win on Wednesday when they take on Methuen at home at 5 p.m. Austin Prep. will take on Archbishop Williams at home Thursday at 5:30 p.m. and will look for their first win of the season. 

Ray is expecting a good match-up on Thursday, and isn't taking the Rangers lightly despite their losing record. 

"I never underestimate anyone, especially people like Methuen," Ray said.  

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