Oyster Bay wins Nassau Class C volleyball title
Oyster Bay wins the Nassau Class C girls volleyball final at SUNY Farmingdale on Monday. Credit: Peter Frutkoff
It’s no secret who Oyster Bay will turn to in need of a crucial point. It’s going to be Katherine Jennette – and for good reason.
Jennette had 12 kills as No. 2 Oyster Bay defeated No. 1 East Rockaway, 25-20, 25-23, 25-17, in the girls volleyball Nassau Class C championship at Farmingdale State College Monday night. Many of her kills came in the match’s most pivotal moments, including kills for Oyster Bay’s 24th point in each of the second and third sets.
“Sometimes when you’re watching Katherine, you don’t know how she does what she does, but it gets done,” coach Jen Iles said. “Hands down, I’ll give her the ball any time I can, and it’s bound to hit the floor at some point.”
Jennette always celebrates a kill with her teammates, but the hit to send Oyster Bay one point away from winning a county title had additional emphasis.
“I knew I had to put the ball away,” Jennette said. “I couldn’t give them a chance to send the ball back over and get a point on us. It was really all or nothing, I had to put that away.”
Oyster Bay (7-8) advances to play the winner of Port Jefferson/Mattituck in the Long Island Class C championship in a state subregional matchup at Hauppauge High School Thursday at 7:30 p.m. East Rockaway finishes 3-11.
“We all showed up,” said Faith Lingen, who had 18 digs. “Everyone was ready to play and it showed on the court. We watched a lot of film and we knew who their hitters were.”
Nicole Gatti added five kills and two aces and Sophia Pavlovic added 18 assists in the win.
This was Oyster Bay’s second straight county title after defeating East Rockaway in five sets last fall. The players were motivated by that championship feeling and chased it all fall. And to win in three sets made the win even sweeter.
“I think it’s really impressive to win this in three sets,” Jennette said. “And we were the lower seed, so this is like an upset and it feels really good to win this.”
Jennette, a senior, didn’t want Monday to be her final varsity match. And with her finishing ability, the Baymen were confident their season would move on past the county final.
“I’ve never seen a player like her before,” Lingen said. “Her hits leave me speechless. I love being co-captain with her.”
