Mattituck girls win volleyball 'C' title
It began with a whimper for Mattituck girls volleyball.
They fell behind 12-0 in the opening game, botching serve returns and hitting ball after ball into the net.
But they shook off the early-match cobwebs to beat Nassau champion East Rockaway, 13-25, 25-23, 25-22, 25-19, to win their second straight Class C Long Island championship/southeast regional at St. Joseph's College.
Courtney Ficner had 14 kills and Claire Finnican had nine kills as the Tuckers (12-10) advanced to the state tournament that begins Saturday in Glens Falls.
"For the program, it means so much," Mattituck coach Frank Massa said. "Last year, we won our first Long Island championship, and we graduated eight seniors from that team. But I knew that we could make a run in the playoffs."
"I'd say we played one of our best matches when it really mattered."
In Game 1, after scoring on Mattituck's opening serve, East Rockaway's Katie Barto tallied 11 consecutive service points.
Despite their less-than-inspiring start, Mattituck outscored the Rocks 13-12 in the game's final 25 points. In Game 2, the Tuckers took a 12-8 lead on a net violation. Ficner had a kill that put Mattituck ahead, 23-20, and they would close out the game five points later to even the match at a game apiece
"Coach Massa pretty much said that the past is the past and to forget about our mistakes because if you keep thinking about them, you're just going to keep redoing them," Finnican said.
Added Massa: "As soon as we kept it close in the second game, I think that gave us the confidence to keep playing well."
East Rockaway (11-6) opened up a 5-0 lead in Game 3 behind Barto's steady serving. But without Barto serving, the Rocks could not mount a consistent offensive attack. The Tuckers scored 13 of the next 16 points to take a five-point lead.
In the fourth game, the Tuckers took an early lead and cruised to the championship.
"We've been looking forward to this, and after the first game, we were doubting whether or not this going to happen," Finnican said. "But it did."
