Boys Volleyball: Thunderbolts Survive Scare and Defeat Oakers

The Coventry Oakers and Cranston East Thunderbolts finished the regular season tied for 6th in Division I. In order to break the tie, they met at Cranston East on Tuesday night, in a play-in game. The winner would advance to the first round of the playoffs.

After taking the first two games, it appeared it would be a short night for the Thunderbolts. However, Coventry won two straight games, to force a fifth game, that East won to take the match 3-2.

In the beginning of the first game, neither team had a lead of more than two points. The teams were deadlocked at 7 and then Coventry reeled off six consecutive points.

The Thunderbolts fought their way back into the match, and an 8-0 run gave them a 17-15 lead. They would never relinquish it, and won the first game 25-21.

East dominated the second game, after the beginning portion of it was competitive. Another 8-0 run gave them a 16-6 lead and they led by double digits for the rest of the game. A kill by junior Kenny Chea on the game's final point gave the Bolts a 25-13 win.

"We didn’t play well the first two games and we were flat," Bolts head coach, Thomas Ferri said.

Coventry started strong in the third game, and led for the majority of it. It was tied at 3, 5, and 8, before the Oakers took a 13-9 lead. In a common theme throughout the third game, the Bolts got to within one or two points, but could not tie the match. Coventry went on to win it 25-19.

The fourth game represented a mirror image of the previous one. The visiting Oakers squad carried their momentum into the fourth game and never trailed. Five consecutive points landed them a 14-8 lead and they forced a decisive 5th game with the 25-21 victory.

"We served-received much better in the third and fourth games," Oakers coach Jonathan Bartlett said.

After the final game, the tie-breaker, was tied at 2, the Thunderbolts took complete control with a 9-1 run. A block by junior Anthony Doti clinched the victory and playoff berth for the Thunderbolts.

"Doti played well and he works extremely hard," Ferri added.

Cranston East will travel to Mount Saint Charles Academy for a match on Thursday night in the first round of the playoffs.

Oakers senior Jeffrey Bennett had 13 kills, 8 digs, and 2 aces. Junior Kyle Carpenter had 38 assists, 8 digs, and 3 blocks.

The Thunderbolts were led by captain Billy Chen who notched 19 kills, 6 blocls, and 12 digs. Chai Kue had 2 aces, 26 assists, and 7 digs. Senior Viseth Phum led the defensive effort for East with 20 digs.

Bartlett praised the Bolts top hitter and reflected on the season. "Chen crushed the ball on a few occasions in the fifth game," he said, "We have improved a ton since the beginning of the season."

Ferri spoke about the decisive fifth game, "In the fifth game we came out strong in the beginning and it set the tone for the rest of the game," the coach added.