Boys Volleyball: Rebels Defeat Thunderbolts

An injury to one of your key players is never easy to overcome. This is a lesson the Thunderbolts learned the hard way on Friday after losing to the South Kingtown Rebels three games to none.

South Kingstown's boys volleyball team (9-1, 8-1 in league play) traveled to Cranston East (5-7, 3-7 in league play). The Rebels proved to be too much for the Thunderbolts, winning three games to none.

Bolts junior Kegan Moody suffered an injury in a game this week and further aggravated it in gym class. He is one of their top hitters and will be sidelined for at least two weeks.

South Kingstown jumped out to an early 5-0 lead in the first game. The Thunderbolts battled back and took a 9-8 lead.

However, the Rebels responded with a 10-2 run, opening up a 18-11 lead. They would go on to the win the first game 25-15.

The Rebels never trailed in the second game, controlling it from the outset. A kill by senior James Pilkington ended the game, with the Rebels winning it 25-17.

Cranston East began the third game with a 6-5 lead. However, they Rebels scored seven out of the next nine points and never looked back. They won the final game 25-18. Rebels junior Taylor Keith ended the game and match with an ace.

Three captains led the way for the Rebels on Friday night. Nate Finnegan notched ten kills and Zach Gallup led the team with 12 kills. Benjamin Gross led the team with 44 assists, effectively running the offense.

Thunderbolts senior Billy Chen led the Bolts with 13 kills and 13 digs. Viseth Phum contributed 12 digs on the night.

Cranston East head coach, Thomas Ferri, spoke about Chen's performance. "Billy is our go to guy and hit the ball well in the back row," he said. "They had better hitting all the way around," the coach added.

Jackie Fagan, Rebels head coach, was pleased with her team's performance. "Our passing was good and the serving was great," she said, "I love the way we ran the middle tonight."