NEEDHAM – In every of the previous two state title-winning seasons, one fixed inside Needham volleyball’s multi-faceted id was Raymond Weng orchestrating the assault as its premier setter.
Not anymore.
Adding to a protracted string of video games because the No. 1 Rockets’ Swiss Army knife, Weng delivered one in all his finest performances of the season as a part of a 3-0 (25-20, 25-22, 25-17) nonleague sweep of No. 7 Westfield (12-2) on Friday night. Eight of his 15 kills got here within the third set, pairing with 12 assists and two aces to assist lead Needham (13-0) to its 59th straight win.
Weng, a two-time All-Scholastic, has been a main chief within the majority of these 59 video games. He has impressed head coach Dave Powell on this transition to a heavy-hitting function all 12 months, however this one – towards the reigning Div. 2 state champions – actually stood out.
“He’s a hitter,” Powell mentioned. “He’s a really good server, he’s a really good hitter. If he’s in the front row, we try to feed him in certain situations. He’s a dynamic player. He’s set us to two straight titles … now we’re asking him to set and hit. He’s doing a good job responding.”
What’s extra spectacular in regards to the win, which noticed Needham’s typical recipe of contributions down the lineup, is who it got here towards. Powell isn’t used being in numerous state tournaments from the Bombers after twice shedding to them within the Div. 1 state last earlier than the pandemic struck, however the magnitude of beating them hasn’t modified.
Nick Maslar (9 kills), Zach Kukharchuk (six kills) and Ryder Finnie (22 assists) performed properly amongst others for Westfield, difficult Needham, particularly in a decent second set.
“There’s just a lot of respect for their program, they act the right way and play the right way,” Powell mentioned. “They’ve won four state titles since 2017 – that’s more than us. … They’re good, I thought we did a really good job at being physical at the net. We had some good blocking, we were able to match their physicality.”
“Coach always says just treat them like any other team,” Weng added. “They’re a great team. though.”
Ethan McCarron (game-high 16 kills) got here out of the gates scorching for the Rockets, delivering 4 kills and a block to assist overcome a uncommon string of service errors from the workforce within the opening set. The Bombers rallied a bit, however Weng and Devin Dellamarggio (24 assists) linked with McCarron, Will McDonald and Brian Cloonan to shut out a 25-20 win.
The second set proved way more harmful, with Kukharchuk and Maslar getting in rhythm in bunches. Seven kills from McCarron and 4 from Luke Lorence gave the Rockets nice offense to drag barely forward all through, however trailed 21-20 at one level off a hitting error. Weng assisted McCarron in response, although, and Weng’s kill two factors later gave Needham a lead it wouldn’t give up in a 25-22 win.
That solely paved the best way for a monster third, with Weng referred to as upon for a rigorous workload. Twice he recorded consecutive kills, and even touched down three in a row for a 21-14 lead regardless of Westfield’s Miles Shepard heating up (5 kills).
McCarron and Dellamarggio every had big video games alongside him, however his strikes all however closed it out. Owen Ching, who performed properly as libero, iced the match with an ace.
“It feels good, I could not be happier enough to have (Dellamarggio) to set for me,” Weng mentioned. “It makes it easier for me. … (The role) is a little new, but I got used to it.”
Source: www.bostonherald.com