Kennedy Volleyball Sweeps Past Mepham

Call it another tuneup for the undefeated Kennedy boys volleyball squad if you want.

But according to Cougars coach Dennis Ringel, Tuesday's matchup against the 2-8 Mepham Pirates at Kennedy High School was a chance to exercise options.

His team's range of offensive options, to be exact.

With a team that boasts overwhelming firepower at the net in the form of one-two punch Ben Hirschler and Brian O'Gorman, it may seem like a luxury to have dynamic spiking capabilities from three or four other players. But to Ringel, it's a matter of having a variety of options to turn to.

"With the playoffs coming, we need to have a range of options to put us over the top," he said.

The 'option du jour' for Kennedy on Tuesday?

Hard-hitting Ben Canarik.

"Ben Canarik was the other option for us today," Ringel said.

In all, Canarik registered eights kills against Mepham, in a three-game sweep that saw the Cougars register impressive margins of victory–25-9, 25-17 and 25-12.

Mepham put in a solid effort, thanks to the work of Roger Borger (4 kills), Idris Kanbur (3 kills) and Andrew Vocatora–plus the scrambling backcourt work of libero Austin Tennenbaum and principal setter Evan Tennenbaum. But there was little they could do against a stacked Kennedy squad.

"I'm proud of my team, we had some good moments–especially in game two," Pirates coach Brenda Dolan said.

Leading the way for Kennedy at the net was Hirschler, who had eight kills of his own, and O'Gorman, who had three kills and three blocks during limited play. Meanwhile, hardhitting Justin Scarpa was aces at the service line for the Cougars– eight of them to be exact.

The most competitive part of the match came in game two, when the Pirates rode a two-ace service run for four points and a 6-6 tie. Kanbur chipped in two more service points, and kills from Borger and Vocatora put the Mepham squad on top, with an 11-7 margin.

But five straight service points for Jacob Tabman soon erased that, and the combined service work of Scarpa, Dylan Simonson and Gary Anderson contributed to a 12-5 run for a Cougars victory in game two.

And that's all she wrote. With the match well in hand, Ringel substituted freely in game three, treating Cougar fans to a glimpse at what some future stars for the team have to offer. An ace for Matt Migdal, and an impressive service run in game three for Adam Lowell, followed, and there was plenty for Ringel to be happy about.

"We like to stress the jump serve, from the first time they hit the program here," the Cougars coach said. "That way, if you need a big serve? They've done it a thousand times."

It'll all come in handy on Nov. 1. That's when Kennedy's postseason begins at home in the opening round of the playoffs, against an opponent yet to be determined.

The Cougars finish up the regular season at Carey on Friday at 4:30 p.m. Mepham will host New Hyde Park on Thursday at 4:30 p.m.