Kings Park falls in Class A pool play
Kings Park's Emily Stephens goes up for the ball against Our Lady of Mercy. (Nov. 19, 2011) Credit: Patrick E. McCarthy
Kings Park's storybook run toward a girls state volleyball championship came to a close Saturday, as the Kingsmen finished 3-3 in the Class A pool-play at the Civic Center in Glens Falls.
Despite the finish, Kings Park ended the season with a 20-2 record.
"This season exceeded our expectations," coach Elizabeth Manly said. "We feel very accomplished and proud of how we performed. This was a dream season for us."
After finishing 5-12 last season and missing out on a playoff bid, the Kingsmen were able to have a 15-win turnaround to finish this season 20-2. Kings Park won the Suffolk League V and the Long Island Class A title for the first time in school history.
Sophomore Joelle Goldstein had 16 kills on the day to lead the Kingsmen. Sophomore Kendall Corcoran had 51 assists over the six games. Junior Tara Trapani had 41 digs. Freshman Amanda Gannon and senior Jessica Levonick each added 14 kills.
Kings Park bounced back from an opening-match loss to Our Lady of Mercy (25-21, 25-16) to defeat Cornwall, 25-23, 25-20, in the second match. In the first game, Goldstein had a kill to break a tie at 23 and Kings Park won on a Cornwall service error.
In the second game, the Kingsmen were down 12-7 until Gannon served nine straight points, three of which were aces. Gannon also had four kills in that game alone, including back-to-back kills to extend Kings Park's lead to 23-20. Kings Park's defense did not allow Cornwall to score again as the Kingsmen got two more kills to seal the victory.
In the final two-game match, Kings Park faced Burnt Hills and a win in both games would force a one-game playoff with Our Lady of Mercy. But Burnt Hills opened a 17-11 lead in the first game. Levonick had back-to-back aces to spark a run that closed the gap to 18-15. But the Kingsmen never got closer than three for the rest of the game as Burnt Hills sealed the win and eliminated Kings Park.
"Emotions were high because we realized the season was coming to an end," Manly said. "But we didn't give up, and we wanted to finish our season with a win."
In the second game, the Kingsmen put their emotions aside and played to a 25-18 win, Burnt Hills' only loss on the day. Manly emptied her bench to give every girl on the roster a chance to play. Sarah Frisina had six digs in the game. Corcoran had a game-high of 11 assists.
"I'm just very proud of my girls," Manly said. "This sets the bar high for next year and we hope to be back here in 2012."
