Boys Volleyball: Cranston West Rolls to Fifth Straight Win

Undefeated Cranston West just keeps rolling along after a three-game sweep, 25-13, 25-16 and 25-13, over West Warwick, in a Division Two South matchup on Tuesday night.

The Falcons (5-0) never trailed and tied only once in the 75-minute contest against the Wizards (2-3).  Displaying a full arsenal on offense combined with a well-prepared defense, the hosts spread the wealth among different players to execute pivotal hits and plays.

The Falcons shot out to a 17-6 first-game lead as Nick Russo mixed it up at net to put the ball away with a stuff tip, push hit, winning block shot and a straight-over-the-top kill. Falcon teammate Jason Tow countered with a variety of well-placed soft dink and hard shots.

 The Wizards relied on a sophomore tandem for many early points: setter Derek Johnson precisely placed several balls to outside hitter Jeff Costa. They also leaned on tall, hard-hitting lefty Jesse Lawrence for other scoring. But they also committed at least nine errors leading to several Falcon points.

The second game began worse than the first one for the visitors, trailing,  8-0, before finally scoring their first point. Though falling behind, 14-5, the Wizards outscored the Falcons 8-4, on two winners by Lawrence and consistent hitting by Johnson to creep within five, 18-13.

Sealing up game two for the Falcons was Stephen Albro with far-ranging digs and saves and Russo who delivered a late kill shot.

Coach Tow praised Albro and Steve Ruhle for their back row play. “Albro really stepped up tonight to cover the seams and Ruhle was phenomenal because he has such an uncanny ability to tell when the ball is either going to stay in play or go out,” he said.

The Wizards kept game three close at first, and were tied, 4-4, until Cranston West separated itself with a final surge of 21-9 the last stages.

The Wizards’ Cameron Secchio made a winning shot at net to narrow the deficit to 17-11 before the Falcons recharged. Ruhle had a few spectacular digs to sustain rallies. Nick Carbone, Eric Borelli, Russo and Tow scored down the stretch to cement another 25-13 result and their fifth straight match victory.

“We did not have to rely as much on setters Sean LaPorte and Ridge Porter in this match,” said Tow. “They did well, but the passing was so good and we were taller than them, so setting was second nature.”

Defense was the primary factor in the win, according to coach Tow. “We had a blocking strategy against them so we were ready for what they had to bring against us, at the net and in the seams.”

"We did not play defense very well and as a result we had to play a lot of defense," said West Warwick head coach Michael Shunney. "Libero Eric Cruz played the best serve-receive game for us."

The Falcons have now conquered league opponents 15 of 16 times in total games. They travel to second-place East Greenwich (3-1) in a key game on Thursday at 6:30 p.m.

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