CAPE COD TIMES
December 10, 2015
Barnstable volleyball team ranked 35th in nation
The Barnstable High School girls volleyball team, which won its 17th state chamionship in November, was rated the nation's No. 35 team in the final CBS Maxpreps' Xcellent 50 Volleyball Rankings. The Red Raiders lost just one match all season and swept Andover in the state chamionship match Nov. 21 in Fitchburg. Barnstable won its last 15 matches. Cathedral of Indianapolis, Ind., was the top-ranked team with a 36-0 record. Barnstable was the only team from New England in the top 50.
MaxPreps Article: http://www.maxpreps.com/news/y1T7RQijDUiIdPJ2uT25Dw/maxpreps-final-2015-top-50-national-high-school-volleyball-rankings.htm
Barnstable wins 17th state volleyball title
Barnstable's volleyball players tumble to the floor in celebration of that state championship win Saturday over Andover in Fitchburg.
It was the Red Raiders' 17th state title. Ron Schloerb/Cape Cod Times
The state championship trophy is held aloft by the Barnstable Red Raiders. Ron Schloerb/Cape Cod Times
FITCHBURG – Barnstable libero Danielle Derosier dove to the court, popping the ball into the air. Setter Ashley McCarthy pushed the ball to the outside and Michaela Cornwall crushed it off Andover's block for the kill.
More accurately, the kill and the Red Raiders' 17th girls volleyball state championship.
Barnstable survived an almost 40-minute first set, then took the next two for a 31-29, 25-16, 25-15 sweep against the Andover Golden Warriors in Saturday's MIAA Division 1 state championship at Fitchburg High School.
The Red Raiders (23-1) finished the season with 15 straight wins, including five postseason sweeps, since losing in five sets to Andover on Oct. 6.
“We knew that this was going to be a serve, serve-receive war. When we went up there (to Andover), we got aced 12 times,” Barnstable coach Tom Turco said. “We coupled that with 20 minutes a day of serve-receive. … We lost one set after that. We lost one set, and they were on a mission after that.”
Andover twice came back against Barnstable in the first set, leading 24-23 with a chance to win it before a shot went out of bounds and it was tied 24-24.
Barnstable freshman Riley James (16 kills, 16 digs, one ace) saved three set points with kills down the stretch of the first set, the last of which tied the match 29-29.
A four-touch violation on Andover gave the Red Raiders the lead, then James drilled the back line for a set-winning ace.
Andover never quite recovered from dropping that first set. The Golden Warriors never led in the second set, and their 2-0 lead to start the third set evaporated two points later.
“That first set was crucial,” Andover coach Jane Bergin said. “Had we won that, I think the tide turns a little bit. I think we lost a little confidence there.”
Four kills from Madison Sollows (24 kills, 2½ blocks, seven digs) early in the second set helped Barnstable lead 7-2, and this time the Raiders wouldn't give away the lead.
Barnstable went up 20-8 thanks in part to seven unforced Andover errors, and Sollows later drilled back-to-back kills to go to set point.
A four-point run pulled Andover to within 24-16, but Cornwall's kill ended the set.
The third set mirrored the second, with three kills from Sollows helping the Raiders go up 4-2 and then 9-4. The Raiders never allowed Andover more than two points in a row after that, content to just chip away at the 16 points they still needed to finish it.
Wyllie Boughton got a kill for Andover, but James answered to go up 12-6. Colleen Mullins pulled Andover to within 14-10, but Cornwall responded with a kill.
Two net violations and a Barnstable block from senior Megan Dombrowski and Caroline Brodt made it 19-12 Raiders. Barnstable then closed out the match on a four-point run that included a huge block from Sollows and McCarthy (36 assists).
Cornwall's championship-clinching kill, her fourth of the night, emptied Barnstable's bench, the entire team mobbing each other near the center of the Red Raiders' side of the court. “Our defense improved so much since the first game we played against Andover,” Sollows said.
“Our defense was crazy. The communication is amazing, from defense to the hitters, from setter to hitter, from defense to setter. It's an amazing atmosphere out on the court.”
That the final point came off a diving dig by Derosier seemed fitting. The senior made 20 digs, returning some of the toughest hits Andover fired all night and locking down the back row. “She was nails the entire year,” Turco said of Derosier.
“She got better and better and better.”
The Red Raiders lose six seniors this year in Cornwall, Sollows, McCarthy, Dombrowski, Savannah Halperin and Jen Peacock.
But James is just a freshman, suggesting the second-ranked hitter this season could get even better in the coming years.
“The freshmen through the juniors, they're all amazing players,” Sollows said. “If they come in wanting to win the state championship, they can do it.”
Champions!
The Barnstable Patriot, November 25, 2015
www.barnstablepatriot.com
By Rob Conery
news@barnstablepatriot.com
Looking back on the Barnstable Red Raiders girls volleyball state championship—clinched Saturday with a 3-0 sweep of Andover—head coach Tom Turco couldn’t say enough about his seniors.
“The seniors are the heart and soul of this team,” said Turco this week. “They are the ones that the underclassmen look up to and are the ones who bear the burden of responsibilities.”
Barnstable won their 17th state championship by knocking off Andover, the only team to beat them during the regular season. The first match was hotly contested. Volleyball games are first to 25, win by two, and best three games of five decides the match.
The first game lasted ages, Barnstable finally taking it, but not before Andover had it at game point, leading 25-24. But they couldn’t go up by the requisite two points, and Barnstable eventually prevailed 31-29.
Even the Andover coach admitted that the wind went out his team’s sails a little bit at that point.
Barnstable won the second game 25-16 and the third 25-15, and the celebration was on. “We had plenty of tape to study,” said Turco about Andover. “We lost to them up there and that certainly motivated us.
We had confidence approaching the finals. The key to a successful season was to become a ‘together’ team. Spending up to 15 hours in the Winner Within Sessions helped the team to bond off the court.”
Madison Sollows, Megan Dombrowski, Ashley McCarthy, Michaela Cornwall, Jen Peacock and Savannah Halperin were the seniors on this year’s championship team. They were a group that Turco said all led in different ways, but who all felt a “sense of urgency because this was their last year. They never accepted losing to Andover. They simply absorbed it and took from that experience the information that would make them better.”
He added, “In regards to this team, I’m proud of them and happy for them.”
The team celebrateted the win in a big, noisy, red and white pile-up on their side of the court after match point.
As for Turco, a coach to the end, his celebration was to rest the next day, “and watch the tape numerous times.”
Barnstable volleyball are back to the summit — state volleyball champions of Massachusetts.
Barnstable, Notre Dame (H), Frontier win titles
In a rematch of a tightly contested regular-season contest, Barnstable found revenge against rival Andover on Saturday night at Fitchburg High, defeating the Golden Warriors, 3-0, en route to being crowned Division 1 state champions.
For Massachusetts coaching legend Tom Turco, the victory gives his team its 11th state championship in the last 13 years, and third in the last four. Saturday’s win also ends Andover’s (23-1) bid at a perfect season.
Turco and his staff have a great deal of respect for the job Andover coach Jane Bergin has done. She led the North champion Golden Warriors to the state championship last year as well, a match they lost to Newton North, 3-2.
“Jane’s done a terrific job with them,” Turco said. “That’s a really, really good team. I’m glad I’m retired because I can spend like all day watching the film. We played them in a non-binding tournament in Medfield, and we beat them there. That gave them a little boost that we could play with them so I’m really happy and proud of these kids.”
Barnstable (23-1) started strong, taking a 5-1 lead in the first set.
In front of a raucous crowd, Andover stormed back from a five-point deficit to tie the score at 22. The teams went back-and-forth before the Red Raiders took a thrilling first set, 31-29.
“I think it took a lot of integrity, and a lot of composure on both sides,” Turco said of the first set. “Both sides were facing set point — if you win that first set, you only got two more left. That was huge because it was such a momentum game.”
The second set was a different story, though, with Barnstable dominating from the opening serve. Barnstable staved off a late 4-0 run by Andover to take the second set in convincing fashion, 25-16.
The resilient Golden Warriors put up a fight in a competitive third set, but the Red Raiders went on an 11-5 run to close out the set, game, and season.
Two members of the Coaches Division 1 All-State Team led the way for Barnstable, freshman Riley James and senior captain Madison Sollows.
James had 16 kills and 16 aces in the victory, while Sollows chipped in 24 kills to go along with seven digs. Ashley McCarthy, also a senior captain, added a team-leading 36 assists and 10 digs.
Division 2 — For the second time in three years, Notre Dame (Hingham) beat Westboro, 3-1, in Fitchburg to win the state title. With the game tied, 1-1, Notre Dame (H) went on a 16-4 run to take a 19-8 lead in the third game. Westboro responded by going on a furious 11-0 run to tie the game at 19-19, however the Crusaders rallied to win the second game, 25-23, en route to a 3-1 victory and the Division 2 state title at Fitchburg High. ND (H) used a 12-5 run to take a 25-20 win in the first game before Westboro took the second, 25-17. NDA-Hingham (22-1) clinched the title with a 25-15 win in the fourth game. Division 3 — Frontier Regional completed its sixth straight Division 3 state championship with a 3-0 win over Lynnfield. Sean MacDonald, in his 13-year tenure as coach of the Red Hawks, has won eight Division 3 state titles. Frontier won by scores of 25-18, 25-20, and 25-20. The Pioneers and Red Hawks faced off last season in the semifinals, a five-set victory for the Red Hawks. Saturday was a sweep. The Red Hawks took the first set quickly, 25-18. Lynnfield set the tone in the second set with six straight points, and took an 8-1 lead. However, the Red Hawks regrouped and climbed back to tie the set at 17-17. From there, Frontier outscored Lynnfield, 8-3, en route to a 25-20 win. “These girls don’t panic, and they don’t give up,” MacDonald said. The third set was back and fourth, with eight lead changes. The Red Hawks led, 12-11, but the Pioneers fought back to take a 19-18 advantage. But Frontier went on a late surge and won the final set, 25-20. Frontier senior Remi Quesnelle had 21 digs. MacDonald said his senior class had an “unprecedented” level of success, and he does not expect something like that to happen again.
FITCHBURG — After taking a hiatus from their annual championship run, Barnstable found themselves back on top following a 3-0 win over Andover, to claim the Div. 1 throne for the 17th time in school history.
After a barnburner in the first set which the Red Raiders took 31-29, Barnstable (23-1) shut down the Golden Warriors (23-1) in the final two sets, winning 25-16 and 25-15 respectively.
“It was important that we kept on playing with the lead,” said Red Raiders head coach Tom Turco. “We really had to keep it going and [the whole team] stepped up.”
It’s the kind of killer instinct you expect from a Barnstable team that has now won five titles in the past six seasons since 2010, even against an Andover team that handed the Red Raiders their only loss of the season.
“Andover beat us earlier in the season, we were hungry for this game,” said senior middle hitter Madison Sollows. “We needed to show Andover that we were number one.”
Andover was unable to stop the dynamic duo of Sollows and Ashley McCarthy. The two seniors exhibited a chemistry that could not be matched by the opposing Golden Warriors.
“In practice we’ve always worked incredibly well together,” Sollows said. “We just have some kind of connection that you can’t break.”
McCarthy finished the night with 25 assists, 13 of them connecting with Sollows for the big finish.
“We had some explosive offensive players out there, but it’s those little digs - those little plays that make the difference…and we made those plays tonight along with the big ones.”
Sollows led all players with 22 kills on the evening.
With just six seniors on the roster, the Red Raiders are primed for another go at the title next year. But for this group, the seniors are happy to go out on top.
“As a senior this is incredible,” said Sollows. “It’s what I’ve been waiting for my whole career, it’s what you work hard in practice for every day - winning it in my freshman and sophomore year was special but this is something else to go out on top in my last year here.”
Coach Turco, of course, could not be happier to see his seniors go out with a bang.
“When you can see your seniors through to their goals, and see them accomplish what they want to, it’s the most satisfying thing in the world. I’m proud of them and I’m happy for them.”
READY FOR BATTLE
Senior-powered Barnstable chases after 17th state championship tonight
www.capecodonline.com, November 21, 2015
By Matt Goisman
Red Raider senior players receive their Div. 1 South championship trophy one week ago after sweeping Taunton 3-0 at Silver Lake Regional High School:
From left, Madison Sollows, Megan Dombrowski, Ashley McCarthy, Michaela Cornwall, Jen Peacock and Savannah Halperin. Ron Schloerb/Cape Cod Times
HYANNIS - This is how it’s supposed to be. The top two girls volleyball teams in Division 1, duking it out for the state championship.
The Barnstable Red Raiders and Andover Golden Warriors go to work at 6 tonight at Fitchburg High School.
This is the fourth straight year Barnstable (22-1) and Andover (23-0) have both made the state tournament. In 2013, Barnstable won in the semifinals en route to its 16th state crown.
In last year’s state tourney, Barnstable was eliminated by Newton North, which went on to beat Andover for the championship.
The Red Raiders’ early exit in 2014 was a bitter pill to swallow for then-juniors Madison Sollows and Michaela Cornwall. They are now back, along with fellow senior captains Savannah Halperin, Jen Peacock, Ashley McCarthy and Megan Dombrowski, looking to return Barnstable to the pinnacle of the sport in Massachusetts.
“We were like, ‘That’s not going to happen again,’” Sollows said of the 2014 defeat in the state semifinals. “We’ve been pretty much basing our season around last year, just trying to work to get past the point that we were at. Now we need to finish it off.”
“We all used it as motivation for what we didn’t want this year,” Cornwall added. “We all worked extra hard so we wouldn’t have that feeling again.”
Andover is the one blemish on Barnstable’s record this season. The Golden Warriors defeated Barnstable 25-17, 21-25, 25-21, 16-25, 15-11 at home on Oct. 6. Three total points decided that match, and Barnstable got some measure of revenge with a two-set sweep (25-19, 25-22) of Andover in the Medfield Open Tournament.
“There’s been a real edge since that match,” Barnstable coach Tom Turco said of the Andover loss in early October. “It was a great volleyball match up there and pushed us to work even harder. … When the point-differential is three, you know it’s two competitive teams.”
Since that defeat, the Raiders have swept all but one of their opponents. The Old Colony League champions cruised through the South Sectional and then crushed an overmatched Concord-Carlisle in the state semifinals, 25-14, 25-12, 25-8.
Sollows had 22 kills and two blocks against the Patriots. She said she’s known how good this team could be since the team held its players-only meeting after the squad was announced in mid-August..
“The past players go into a meeting and we find out who the new players are,” Sollows said. “And the second I heard their names, I was like, ‘OK, yeah, this is possible. We could definitely pull through and win state.’”
Freshman outside hitter Riley James is no doubt one reason for Sollows’ confidence. Riley has played like anything but a first-year player, mixing her high-flying kills out of the front row with a consistently tough jump-float serve.
James looked completely at ease against Concord-Carlisle, ripping off 15 kills, two aces and 15 digs on defense.
Sollows, a middle hitter, leads the team in kills (389) and total blocks (63), but James ranks second with 277 kills.
James’ all-around skills as a freshman put her up there with her upperclass teammates. Her 208 digs rank second behind libero Danielle Derosier’s 269, suggesting the Raiders should be just fine once seniors like Sollows and Cornwall (89 kills, 10 aces, 17 blocks, 102 digs) graduate next spring.
“She’s done a great job coming in, obviously,” Cornwall said of James. “She’s one of our leading hitters, and we all come together as a team, and she’s worked really well with everyone.”
Andover has also been dominant, not given up a set this postseason, sweeping Newton North in the semis, 25-9, 25-21, 25-9.
Madelyn Reppucci (167 kills, 94 total blocks), Colleen Mullins (167 kills, 57 aces, 26 total blocks, 195 digs) and Wyllie Boughton (163 kills, 77 aces, 59 total blocks, 166 digs) make up the Golden Warriors’ three-pronged attack.
BARNSTABLE PATRIOT
www.barnstablepatriot.com, November 20, 2015
Written by Rob Conery
Heading for the Finals
Barnstable Volleyball continued its march in the state playoffs on Tuesday night, defeating Concord-Carlisle 3 games to 0 in a state semi-final match.
“[We have] three practices leading up to the state finals to prepare for Andover’s strengths,” said Turco. “I think serve return will be key. After the first Andover game we have spent considerable time daily on fundamentals and repetitions.”
Freshman Riley James continues to drive the Red Raiders offense as they head into the state final. Senior Madison Sollows has been playing great, the big number 7 standing tall at the net and alternatively smashing balls that just can’t be retrieved by the opponent’s defense, or just eating them up, coming in so fast as to be unreturnable.
Danielle Derosier is playing well at the libero position, digging hard to return serves and organizing the Barnstable attack.
Andover topped Newton North in the other semi-final. The Red Raiders beat Newton North 3-0 in their meeting this year, and the state final sets up a rematch with Andover, responsible for 19-1 Barnstable’s only loss this season, a hard fought 3-2 contest that went Andover’s way back in October. “They have a very consistent serve and kept Newton North out of system a lot in the semis,” said Turco.
The state final will be Saturday at 6 p.m., Barnstable vs Andover at Fitchburg High School. Barnstable is going for its 17th state championship. Ahead of the Final, Turco says he isn’t telling his players any one thing in particular, “It’s more important what they’re telling each other.”
BOSTON GLOBE
www.bostonglobe.com, November 17, 2015
By Tyler Blint-Welsh and Andrew Penacho, Globe Correspondents
Barnstable sweeps out Concord-Carlisle
Barnstable players (from left) Riley James (23), Ingrid Murphy, Ashley McCarthy, and Madison Sollows celebrate a point in the third set.
Photo by Matthew Healey for the Globe
After losing in the state semifinals last year, Barnstable was determined to avoid a repeat.
The Red Raiders exorcised last season’s demons and clinched their spot in the final with a 3-0 victory over previously undefeated Concord-Carlisle in the Division 1 state semifinal Tuesday night in Shrewsbury
“Losing in last year’s state semifinal left a bad taste and it stung,” said Barnstable coach Tom Turco. “We’ve had an edge ever since; it’s something that makes us work harder.”
Barnstable will face Andover in the Division 1 state final Saturday at Fitchburg High.
Though Barnstable (22-1) won in straight sets (25-14, 25-12, 25-8), a rocky start led them to an early deficit. Concord-Carlisle (22-1) came out strong and scored five kills in the first 10 points of the match.
But Barnstable quickly adjusted its defense and eventually ran away with the match.
“We weren’t playing much defense in the very beginning,” said Turco. “The defense you saw from midpoint in set one, until the end— even with a big lead these kids were on the floor digging balls and extending rallies— that’s the defense that we pride ourselves on.”
Madison Sollows, who led with 22 kills, said that from the beginning of the year, all her team was focused on was bringing a state title to Barnstable.
What helped set the tone, however, was an early season meeting held by the upperclassmen.
“We all went into a meeting and told the underclassmen what it felt like [to lose] so they didn’t want to feel that either,” she said. “So we went in and we made our goals, and our number one goal was to win the state championship.
So that’s all we’re trying to do right now.”
CAPE COD TIMES
www.capecodonline.com, November 17, 2015
By Matt Goisman
mgoisman@capecodonline.com
RED RAIDER FINAL
Barnstable sweeps Concord-Carlisle in semis, will face Andover in title match
The Barnstable Red Raiders celebrates right after the final winning point against Concord-Carlisle in Tuesday's state semifinals in Shrewsbury.
Barnstable will face Andover in Saturday's title match.
Ron Schloerb/Cape Cod Times
SHREWSBURY – Madison Sollows' 2014 volleyball season ended in misery, the then-junior middle hitter forced to endure Barnstable's four-set loss to Newton North in the Division 1 state semifinals.
Sollows, now a senior, made sure that outcome wouldn't happen again in 2015.
Sollows crushed a team-best 22 kills and had 1.5 blocks Tuesday, and the Red Raiders cruised to a 25-14, 25-12, 25-8 sweep of Concord-Carlisle in the state semifinals at Shrewsbury High School.
Barnstable (19-1) will go after its 17th state championship Saturday when it faces Andover in the state championship at Fitchburg High School at 6 p.m. The Red Raiders swept their fourth straight opponent this postseason and have lost just one set since falling 3-2 to Andover on Oct. 6.
“The adjustment we had to do was play better defense,” Barnstable coach Tom Turco said. “I was really proud of the way that they played defense. Despite the score, they played the type of defense that they usually play.”
A different Raider came up big in each set. Freshman outside hitter Riley James (15 kills, 15 digs, two aces) kept seven straight jump-serves inbounds, their float tying up the Patriots (19-1) and leading to five unforced errors in an eight-point run that made it 19-9 Barnstable.
James finished the set with a kill that skipped off the Concord-Carlisle block and out of bounds.
Michaela Cornwall, a senior outside hitter who also was on the court for that 2014 semifinal loss, only had four kills, but two came early in the second set. Her kill and block one point later helped key another eight-point run that ended with Barnstable up 14-2. Barnstable and Concord-Carlisle traded points for most of the second set, but the Raiders led by at least 10 the rest of the way, finishing with a tip by senior Savannah Halperin (two aces) and a kill by senior Megan Dombrowski (three kills).
Sollows then took over the third set, scoring five of the team's first 10 points. Sollows' range as a hitter proved difficult to contain, especially when she switched from a hard spike to a softer tip that always seemed to land between diving Concord-Carlisle players.
Ten Red Raiders points came via the tip, including five from Sollows.
“It's mostly the defense,” Sollows said. “The defense will yell to me while I'm up in the air. If there's two blocks, they yell 'Two!' So then usually I just swipe it right to the right, which is usually like an instant kill, which is easy, so we practice it a lot.”
Setter Ashley McCarthy ran Barnstable's offense with 42 assists. Danielle Derosier tallied three aces and was also solid in the back row with seven kills.
Gabby Koenig (five kills, one ace, one block), Rex Honan (two kills, one ace, three blocks) and Katrina Judicke (three kills, one block) led the way for Concord-Carlisle. But once Barnstable found its groove midway through the first set, the match quickly went the Raiders' way.
“Volleyball is a total game of momentum, and we saw it here tonight. We dug ourselves some holes that we just couldn't dig out of,” Concord-Carlisle coach Jim Crandall said. “They're well-disciplined, great defense, they're very smart on offense. There were no surprises. I knew we were fighting an uphill battle all the way.”
CAPE COD TIMES
www.capecodonline.com, November 17, 2015
Barnstable aiming to be semi-tough
The situation is a familiar one for the Barnstable Red Raiders girls volleyball team. The opponent, not so much.
Barnstable, a 16-time state champion, heads to Shrewsbury High today to face Concord-Carlisle for the first time.
The Red Raiders advanced to their 20th state semifinal under coach Tom Turco by winning the South championship on Saturday and eagerly await the challenge the Patriots will present.
“It’s pretty exciting playing a team we’ve never played before,” Turco said of Concord-Carlisle.
The Patriots went 19-0 in the regular season and swept through the Central-West Division to advance to the final four.
Barnstable, 18-1 on the season, likewise swept through the South with three wins and now has its sights set of reclaiming the state it lost last year in the state semis.
Senior captain Madison Sollows and freshman Riley James have led the Red Raiders offensively all season while senior captain Ashley McCarthy is also one of many key contributors to the well-balanced Barnstable attack.
The Red Raiders easily handled Taunton in the South final, beating the Tigers 25-15, 25-12, 25-6.
James led the offense against Taunton with 12 kills while Sollows added 10. Sollows also came up with some key blocks while sophomore Caroline Brodt had seven digs and four aces. Senior captain Megan Dombrowski and senior captain Michaela Cornwall added four kills each in the win.
Concord-Carlisle, winners of the Dual County League Small, are led on offense by seniors Gabby Koenig (168 kills) and Katrina Judicke (128), senior Sophia Kaplan (407 assists) at setter and senior Samantha Herr (179 digs) on defense.
The Patriots beat Central-West’s No. 2 seed Wellesley (18-3), 3-2 in the finals after beating No. 5 Lincoln-Sudbury, 3-2 and No. 9 Acton-Boxboro, 3-1.
Concord-Carlisle boasts strong outside hitters, and Turco has had his team practicing defense on the back row.
“It comes down to how you play,” Turco said, adding that in every match adjustments are always a key.
CAPE COD TIMES
www.capecodonline.com, November 14, 2015
South Champs Again
Red Raiders sweep Taunton to win 21st sectional title in 24 years
By Geoff Converse
gconverse@capecodonline.com
Barnstable's player celebrates with high fives after defeating Taunton to win the Division 1 South volleyball championship Saturday at Silver Lake Regional High School in Pembroke.
Jen Peacock (17) and Bridget Murphy connect with Red Raiders teammate Abigail Hatch (12).
Photo by
Ron Schloerb/Cape Cod Times
KINGSTON – When you’ve won 20 South Sectional titles in 23 tries, it’s easy to intimidate a foe that is making its first-ever appearance in the sectional finals.
That, in a nutshell, sums up Saturday’s win by Barnstable over Taunton in the MIAA Division I South Sectional Finals held at Silver Lake Regional High School.
The top-seeded Red Raiders rolled to a 3-0 (25-15, 25-12 and 25-6) sweep over the seventh-seeded Tigers and move on to the state semifinals against Concord-Carlisle on a date and site to be determined.
Barnstable left little doubt as to the outcome of this match, trailing only in the early stages of the second set and after the opening point of the third set.
It was too much of everything for Barnstable and not enough answers from Taunton, which showed flashes of being at the same level but being unable to sustain any kind of attack.
“Coming into the match I told the girls that they were a team of destiny,” said Taunton coach Toby Chaperon. “Unfortunately, they were going up against a team of dynasty. Barnstable is far and away the best team we have seen this year. They had no flaws. They could serve, force the ball where they wanted to and their defense was amazing.”
For Barnstable, the usual cast of characters shined. Senior Madison Sollows had some monster kill shots (10 in the game) and she made a couple of timely blocks that turned away any hope the Tigers had of getting back into the match.
Freshman Riley James was a force up front, recording 12 kills. Five of them in the second set helped spark the Raiders on a 10-1 run that brought them back from a 7-5 deficit to a 15-8 lead.
Caroline Brodt had a stellar match, recording seven digs and four aces. The cherry on top of the sundae for her was serving 11 straight points to close out the match.
Ashley McCarthy was a standout setting up her mates throughout the night, recording 23 assists, six digs and four kills while Megan Dombrowski and Michaela Cornwall each added four kills.
“I thought it took us a while to get going,” said Barnstable head coach Tom Turco. “We didn’t get any clean kills until the second set. I thought our serve-receive players did a solid job all night and our pursuit defense was effective against them.”
Rarely did Taunton get a clean shot to put away a point. There always seemed to be a Raider in the vicinity of the ball.
“I felt like we were going against 12 players out there,” said Taunton’s Chaperon. “Give Barnstable a lot of credit. They know how to play defense and not let any cheap points get on the board. Like they say, ‘Defense wins championships,’ and it won them one tonight.”
Besides Brodt, other Raiders who had impressive runs while serving included Savannah Halperin, who skippered a seven-point run that expanded the Barnstable lead in the opening set from 5-4 to 12-4. Danielle Derosier, the Raiders’ Liberio, was a force all night receiving serves and rarely being fooled by any Taunton offerings. She ended the night with nine digs and four service aces of her own. The junior also authored a five-point run in the opening set and then, in the third set, led off the Barnstable service with a seven-point run to give the Raiders an 8-1 lead that signaled that the end of this match was near.
So now it’s on to the semifinals as Barnstable seeks to get back to the state finals.
CAPE COD TIMES
www.capecodonline.com, November 11, 2015
Red Raiders rediscover their energy for sweep
By Rob Duca
Contributing Writer
HYANNIS – It was an unusual situation for the Barnstable girls volleyball team, especially in its home gym. The Red Raiders had won the first game of the match – although not easily – but found themselves behind 16-13 in the second game as Bishop Feehan appeared on its way to tying things up.
That’s when coach Tom Turco called timeout and gave his girls a wake-up call.
“I just stated the obvious, which was that all the energy was on the other side of the court,” he said. “I told them that they were being out-worked, and that’s something they never want to hear … ever. I guess that struck a nerve.”
The Red Raiders returned to the court and it was as though a light switch had been flipped. Madison Sollows immediately blasted a winner to get things rolling, and then Riley James took over, collecting five of her 20 kills in a 10-1 run that turned around the game and the match. The Red Raiders finished off a 25-20 victory in that second game, then completed the 3-0 sweep with a dominating 25-8 triumph.
“We all just looked each other in the eyes and came together as a team,” said Sollows, who matched James with 20 kills. “We did not want to lose even one game. We wanted to win all three. When we came out of that timeout the energy was shooting through the roof.”
With the win the No. 1-seeded Red Raiders (20-1) advanced to their seventh straight Division 1 South Sectional final and the 23rd in Turco’s 28 years at Barnstable. They will meet the winner of Thursday night’s Taunton-New Bedford game at 5 p.m. on Saturday at Silver Lake Regional High School in Kingston. Fourth-seeded Bishop Feehan (14-6) saw its season end at Barnstable’s hands for the third straight year.
Although the Red Raiders rolled at the end, it was not an easy match against a Bishop Feehan squad that boasted a pair of 6-foot-1 girls in Lauren Manis and Justin Ballou. Both played well in the opening game despite losing 25-18, and the Shamrocks continued giving the Red Raiders trouble in the second game. Bishop Feehan grabbed leads of 10-7, 12-9, 13-10 and the aforementioned 16-13 as Manis and Ballou made big plays at the net that prevented the Red Raiders from building momentum.
What changed after the timeout? Turco said his team’s energy level and defense picked up, with Ashley McCarthy contributing big momentum-swing plays. Bishop Feehan coach Joe Reardon provided a more basic explanation.
“Barnstable stopped making mistakes,” he said. “We were playing well, we were keeping the ball in play and forcing them into some awkward situations, but you take a good team like them, with lots of good servers, lots of talent, lots of depth, you know they’re not going away.”
Savannah Halperin served four points in the second game as the Red Raiders finally pulled into a 17-16 lead, and Michaela Cornwall served five more points for a 23-17 cushion. Both girls had big nights, with Cornwall collecting seven kills and seven digs, and Halperin pitching in with seven digs. McCarthy led the Red Raiders in assists with 39.
So the Red Raiders are back in the South finals as they look to take the next step on the road to yet another state championship.
“We’re all very excited to be in the sectional finals, but our No. 1 goal is to win the state championship,” Sollows said. “We don’t want our season to end before that.”
CAPE COD TIMES
www.capecodonline.com, November 9, 2015
Barnstable begins quest to regain state title
By Rob Duca
Contributing Writer
Barnstable's Michaela Cornwall blocks a shot against North Attleboro in Monday's Division 1 South quarterfinal-round match in Hyannis and
the Red Raiders celebrate their victory.
Photos by Ron Schloerb/Cape Cod Times
For a photo gallery, go online to CapeCodTimes.com/photos
HYANNIS – North Attleboro girls volleyball coach Jeff Crins let out a laugh when he heard the question. What is it like playing Barnstable?
“I think frustrating would be the word,” he said. “Coming here to play them is just a tough environment. Their reputation follows them and their play backs it up. It’s one of those things where you have to play your best volleyball. You can’t let down in any area. If you do, they’ll pick on any weakness.”
The No. 16-seeded Big Red, which finished 11-11, came into Monday’s Division 1 South Sectional quarterfinal as decided underdogs. Although they hung tough for parts of all three games, they were no match for the top-seeded Red Raiders. Barnstable simply had too much power, too much experience, too much of everything.
It also didn’t help North Attleboro’s cause that the Red Raiders find themselves in an unusual spot in this year’s tournament: For the first time in five years they are not the defending state champions.
“There’s been an edge all year (because of that),” Barnstable head coach Tom Turco said. “That fact motivates them during the real tough parts of practice when they hear that voice reminding them that they have to work hard to get to where they want.”
Barnstable took the first step on Monday, winning 25-15, 25-13, 25-13 for a 3-0 sweep that required barely more than one hour to complete. The Red Raiders trailed only once in the match when North Attleboro scored the first point of the second game. But they started slowly, making some uncharacteristic mistakes in the opening game.
“They had to feel them out a little bit. They’d never seen this team,” Turco said. “The remaining teams in the South are all ones we’ve played recently or last year, but North Attleboro was a new team to them so it took a little while to figure out what spots we could hit at.”
That came soon enough, and once it did, the usual suspects dominated. Madison Sollows was outstanding, finishing with 19 kills, while freshman Riley James continued to play far beyond her years with 12 kills, five digs and two aces. Michaela Cornwall was superb, collecting seven kills and seven digs. Savannah Halperin also played a key role in the win. She shifted to Libero in the absence of Danielle Derosier, who missed the match due to illness, and picked up nine digs and three aces. Ashley McCarthy led in assists with 26.
That amounts to contributions from many different girls, which is what makes Barnstable so difficult to defend.
“Everybody played well,” Turco said. “We had to switch things around a little bit in Danielle’s absence, but Savannah did fine. Madison is a very good hitter and she has a variety of shots.”
Now 19-1, the Red Raiders advance to the South semifinals against the winner of Bishop Feehan and Whitman-Hanson.
“Each and every match we play now, the competition will get greater and greater,” Turco said.
CAPE COD TIMES
www.capecodonline.com, November 4, 2015
Girls volleyball: Top tourney seed goes to powerhouse Barnstable
By Paul Godfrey
pgodfrey@capecodonline.com
If the Barnstable Red Raiders girls volleyball team is going to get back to the top of the mountain in 2015, they will in all likelihood have to go through some familiar foes to get there.
Barnstable (18-1) earned the top seed in the Division 1 South Sectional tournament as the MIAA released the pairings on Tuesday, highlighting a group of seven local volleyball schools to qualify for the postseason.
Atlantic Coast League champion Dennis-Yarmouth (13-2) is seeded No. 2 in Division 2 South while ACL runner-up Sandwich (15-4) earned the fifth seed.
Four Cape schools qualified in Division 3, with Cape & Islands League winner Sturgis East (13-3) claiming the No. 4 seed. Bourne (15-5), Upper Cape (11-9) and St. John Paul II (9-9) earned the sixth, 11th and 16th seeds, respectively.
The 16-time state champion Red Raiders will be looking to defend their South title, which they have won the last five seasons. Last year, Barnstable lost to Newton North in the Div. 1 state semifinals, ending its run of four straight state titles.
The Red Raiders avenged that defeat to Newton North to a certain extent with a 3-0 win over the Tigers in the regular season this year. Barnstable’s lone defeat was a five-set loss to Andover (3-2), which Newton North defeated to win the 2014 state championship.
This year’s Red Raiders squad is both talented and battle-tested. Barnstable has six upperclassmen and five juniors on its roster with senior Madison Sollows leading a formidable frontline. Their ability to turn their digs into offensive scoring opportunities and the setting from senior Ashley McCarthy are the staple to the Red Raiders success.
“One of our focus points is serve-receive,” said Barnstable coach Tom Turco, who recorded both his 600th victory in girls volleyball and 700th overall this season. “We spend a lot of time on that every day at practice. We have a number of kids who pass very well.”
Barnstable will begin play next Tuesday in quarterfinal action, hosting the winner of a first-round match between No. 8 Bridgewater-Raynham and No. 9 North Attleboro. The Red Raiders swept B-R twice during the regular season on their way to the Old Colony League title.
Lurking down the road in Div. 1 South are No. 4 Bishop Feehan and No. 3 New Bedford. Barnstable defeated the Shamrocks 3-1 in last year’s South final while the Whalers were the last team prior to the Red Raiders to win Div. 1 South in 2009. Mansfield (14-5) is seeded second in Div. 1 South.
“You can’t get to where they want to go without the first step,” said Turco of his team’s bid for a sectional and ultimately, a state title. “We’re focused on the next match ahead.”
CAPE COD TIMES
www.capecodonline.com, November 2, 2015
Barnstable 3, Duxbury 1
Freshman Riley James had 19 kills and 19 digs to lead the Red Raiders over the Dragons in Duxbury.
Duxbury (18-4) took the first game 25-16, but Barnstable (18-1) swept the next three 25-15, 25-18, 25-13 in their season finale.
Senior captain Ashley McCarthy added 36 assists and seven digs, while senior captain Madison Sollows had 19 kills, three blocks and 11 service points, including three aces.
Junior Danielle Derosier contributed 15 digs to the Red Raiders’ cause. Senior captain Michaela Cornwall added 13 digs, junior Sara Higgins had 14 service points and sophomore Caroline Brodt chipped in with nine service points, including a pair of aces.
CAPE COD TIMES
www.capecodonline.com, October 28, 2015
Barnstable 3, North Quincy 0
Senior captain Madison Sollows had 15 kills and two blocks and freshman Riley James added 12 kills in visiting Red Raiders’ 25-13, 25-9, 25-12 win in North Quincy.
James added five digs and seven service points for Barnstable (17-1) against North Quincy (15-6).
Senior captain Megan Dombrowski three kills while senior Ashley McCarthy spread the offense around with 26 assists. Senior captain Michaela Cornwall chipped in with three kills and seven service points while junior Danielle Derosier had 13 digs and 11 service points, sophomore Caroline Brodt had six assists and senior captain Savannah Halperin had 12 service points.
The Red Raiders close out the regular season on Monday before Tuesday’s South Sectional tournament pairings are announced.
CAPE COD TIMES
www.capecodonline.com, October 27, 2015
Barnstable 3, Medfield 0
Sollows Leads Barnstable Past Medfield
Senior Night
HYANNIS - Senior captain Madison Sollows had 15 kills and senior captain Ashley McCarthy added 27 assists to lead the Barnstable Red Raiders girls volleyball team over the Medfield Warriors, 25-10, 25-9, 25-11 in Hyannis.
Sollows and McCarthy led Barnstable (16-1) on senior night, as senior captain Michaela Cornwall added nine kills and six digs, senior captain Jen Peacock had four digs, senior captain Megan Dombrowski had two kills and senior captain Savannah Halperin had four digs and six service points.
Junior Dani Derosier sparked the Red Raiders at the service line with 27 points while adding 11 digs defensively. Freshman Riley James added six kills.
Barnstable is at North Quincy today, while Medifield is 13-6.
October 24, 2015
Barnstable Girls Volleyball
"Medfield Tournament Champions"
Results AM POOL:
Barnstable/Hopkinton:25-18, 27-25
Barnstable/Bishop Feehan 25-16, 25-17
Barnstable/Mansfield 25-23, 25-13
Results
PM POOL:
Barnstable/Minnechaug 25-13, 25-11
Barnstable/Medfield 25-17, 25-15
Barnstable/Duxbury 25-18, 25-23
Results FINAL:
Barnstable/Andover 25-19, 25-22
CAPE COD TIMES
www.capecodonline.com, October 23, 2015
Barnstable 3, Westboro 0
The Red Raiders serve-receive game was huge against No. 4 Westboro, allowing only two aces in 57 attempts in a 25-22, 25-20, 25-22 win in Hyannis.
Barnstable, the No. 2 team, improved to 15-1 while the Rangers fell to 15-2.
Freshman Riley James and senior captain Madison Sollows led the Red Raider offense with 13 kills each while senior captain Michaela Cornwall added four.
Junior Danielle Derosier sparked the defense with 15 digs while adding 11 points at the service line and senior captain Ashley McCarthy spread the offense around with 26 assists.
Sollows added five blocks in the win while James had nine digs.
CAPE COD TIMES
www.capecodonline.com, October 21, 2015
Barnstable 3, Dennis-Yarmouth 0
HYANNIS -- Offense was key for the Red Raiders girls volleyball team, as Barnstable swept past the Dennis-Yarmouth Dolphins 3-0 on Wednesday with scores of 25-7, 25-12, 25-15.
Senior captain Madison Sollows led the offensive charge for Barnstable (14-1) with 11 kills. Freshman Riley James added eight, freshman Ingrid Murphy had six and junior Bridget Murphy knocked down five.
Senior captains Megan Dombrowksi and Michaela added three kills each for the Red Raiders. Senior captain Ashley McCarthy recorded 19 assists, while sophomore Caroline Brodt had 13 service points, including three aces, and junior Danielle Derosier had nine digs and 18 points at the service line.
Olivia Dannewitz led Dennis-Yarmouth (10-4) with 18 assists. Madison Maranda had six kills, Carly Nehl (two blocks) and Tarra Coppinger added five kills each and Brooke Hall had a kill and a pair of blocks.
Barnstable hits the road to take on No. 4 ranked Westboro on Friday.
The Dolphins hosts Sandwich on Friday. A win over the Blue Knights would give D-Y the Atlantic Coast League title outright, while a Sandwich victory would force a tie atop the league between the two.
BARNSTABLE PATRIOT
www.barnstablepatriot.com, October 23, 2015
Written by Rob Conery
A win for girls volleyball
Barnstable's Michaela Cornwall, center, rushes to hit the ball during Wednesday's game with D-Y. Photo by Alan Belanich
Barnstable girls volleyball defeated Notre Dame Academy 3-0 on Tuesday night in the gymnasium on the Hyannis campus.
Beforehand, head coach Tom Turco, now in his 28th year, was awarded a commemorative game ball marking his recent milestone of 600 volleyball wins. Asked what it meant to win that many games, Turco said, “it means that, A: I’ve been doing this for a long time. And that B: the players embrace the team concept.”
Embrace it they do, the whole program turns out for the games. The freshmen and JV, both of whom won their earlier games, show up en masse to cheer on the varsity, chant and sing songs.
Barnstable got off to a good start, jumping out to a 4-1 lead. Notre Dame had some tall players on their front line, and when they got properly set up, their shots were real blasts, sometimes just doubling a defender into a crumple; unreturnable. But Barnstable was better organized and used tenacious defense to their advantage. One blocked shot spun wickedly, full of topspin, and skittered almost the length of the net before falling. Point, Barnstable. They won the first game in the best of five, 25-20.
“The game was hard fought. We got off to a sluggish start, but we had some great defensive play in tough conditions,” said Turco.
If that’s a sluggish start, I’d hate to see this team come roaring out of the gates. The energy is palpable. There’s a bench but no one uses it, they stand and cheer the whole time. The whole team comes and goes as a group before the game, chanting and running in formation. They jump like excited deer. They don’t enter the gym so much as seize it like territory.
The second match was close, the turning point. Turco called Notre Dame an “excellent team, and well coached.” They showed it in the second game, pushing Barnstable to the limit but finally falling 28-26 under the win-by-two scoring.
Still ND didn’t quit, taking their first lead of the evening in the third game. They got as far ahead as 4-1, but Barnstable just buckled down and fought back. Senior Madison Sollows was ferocious up front, smashing shots that one was surprised didn’t leave burn marks on the wooden floor.
Barnstable was quicker to loose balls, faster on the floor, more determined in the air. Despite giving up several inches in height to the ND front line, they blocked and battled at the net, often rejecting kill shots. They dive all over for balls about to hit the floor, two and sometimes three players hitting the deck. They do this wearing minimal padding. If there is a degree of toughness somewhere beyond unbelievably tough, they own it.
“It’s mostly about energy,” said Turco in an understatement.
Junior Danielle Derosier, who plays the libero position that anchors the backline, is an exemplar of this high energy ethos. Every play was life and death, every point won a cause for celebration—she encouraged, resolutely positive, a vocal leader in the back, setting the tone for the whole team.
Even when Notre Dame took their first lead of the evening, Barnstable battled back. Games are first to 25, and when Barnstable reached 22 in the clinching game, the crowd came alive. Not that they were asleep before that. Volleyball, with its rich tradition of winning, is well supported at the school and the gym was rocking all night. But for the last few points, they took it to the next level, everyone on their feet, the bleachers shaking from the stomping.
The Red Raiders scored match point on a put back and the celebration was on.
“These are the matches they live for,” said Turco, his team extra motivated by a recent loss to Andover. Tuesday’s win saw them bettering a staunch opponent. “These are the matches they absolutely love to play. They live for it.”
CAPE COD TIMES
www.capecodonline.com, October 20, 2015
Barnstable 3, Notre Dame 0
BARNSTABLE -- Tom Turco’s Red Raider volleyball team is gearing up for yet another postseason run.
Facing undefeated Notre Dame Academy Tuesday evening, Turco’s charges had an edge to prove last season’s 18-5-1 record - their first non-state championship season since 2009 - was just a fluke.
“The old phrase is 'practice like you’re number two and play like you’re number one.’ And I tell my girls, ‘I got news for you: You ain’t number one’,” Turco said.
The Red Raiders took that message and ran with it, as well as the match, winning 3-0 against the Cougars.
Coming into the match sporting a 12-1, 4-0 Old Colony League record and riding a four-game win streak after losing to Andover, Barnstable methodically jumped out to 9-2 lead while they attacked the net and relied on communication. Notre Dame (13-1), ranked as the top team in Division 2, while Barnstable is fourth in Division 1, showed some fight and cut the lead to 15-12 as they went on a 10-6 run before Turco called a timeout to regather his team.
“I don’t need to motivate those girls for these type of games. They absolutely love these type of tests,” he said.
The Red Raiders finished off the Cougars 25-20 to take the first game.
Notre Dame battled strike for strike in the second game led by junior outside hitter Katie Howley’s 15 kills on 39 attempts. Add in 33 assists for senior captain setter Corinne Cox and the Red Raiders found themselves committing uncharacteristic errors, but was able to power through to secure the 28-26 win in game two.
A 25-20 victory in game three earned a match sweep for Barnstable, as coach Turco was honored for his 600th victory prior to the start of the game.
“Six-hundred wins mean a) I’ve been doing this for a long time and b) I’ve been lucky to have players who embrace the team concept,” Turco said. “We had players who didn’t get to play tonight who are truly excited about this victory tonight. And it’s players embracing the team mentality that helps me coach them.”
For the Raiders, senior middle hitter Madison Swallows led the team with 14 kills while freshman outside hitter Riley James chipped in with 9 kills and 16 defensive digs. Turco raved about the team’s defensive stands against the hard-striking Cougars.
“I have to give credit to my girls. There was some great defensive plays, some great defensive digs in tough situations.”
CAPE COD TIMES
www.capecodonline.com, October 15, 2015
Barnstable 3, Brockton 0
Riley James had 16 kills and four digs to help the Red Raiders sweep the Boxers at Brockton. Barnstable won 25-12, 25-11, 25-14.
Madison Sollows had 10 kills and three blocks, and Michaela Cornwall had nine kills, eight digs and two blocks for Barnstable (12-1). Savannah Halperin had 14 service points, and Ashley McCarthy facilitated the offense with 29 assists, plus 10 digs.
Ingrid Murphy and Danielle Derosier had five digs each. Caroline Brodt had three blocks.
Barnstable plays Notre Dame Academy, ranked first on MaxPreps, on Tuesday.
BOSTON GLOBE
www.bostonglobe.com, October 15, 2015
Wednesday’s school roundup:
Tom Turco wins 600th as Barnstable girls’ volleyball coach
By Samuel Evers Globe Correspondent October 15, 2015
The No. 2 Barnstable girls’ volleyball team (11-1) entered Wednesday’s road matchup against No. 14 Dartmouth (11-2) with a chance for a special night.
A win for the Red Raiders would mean a victory over a conference opponent, an Old Colony championship, and most notably, win No. 600 for coach Tom Turco as coach.
After two close sets that went Barnstable’s way, the Red Raiders completed the sweep, beating Dartmouth, 3-0, making Turco the first Massachusetts coach to reach the milestone.
“Dartmouth is always a really tough team to play. I thought we struggled a bit early but fixed what we needed to fix,” said Turco, now in his 28th year at Barnstable. “It was a big win against a league rival, and it was a big crowd, which added a lot to the game. That’s what makes it fun.”
Senior Madison Sollows had 14 kills for the Red Raiders. Freshman Riley James also played well, finishing with 11 kills.
After the game, Turco’s players had a ceremony acknowledging the achievement.
“That was nice,” said Turco, laughing. “The number of wins is just a reflection of all the great athletes we’ve had over the years. We have talented athletes and kids that embrace the team concept; that’s why things have fallen into place here.”
The schedule doesn’t get any easier for Barnstable, which plays No. 18 Brockton and No. 3 Notre Dame (Hingham) in the next two games.
CAPE COD TIMES
www.capecodonline.com, October 14, 2015
Turco gets win No. 600 as Raiders take crown
DARTMOUTH - Barnstable Red Raiders’ girls volleyball coach Tom Turco keeps racking up the milestones, earning win No. 600 with his team’s 25-19, 25-22, 25-10 victory over the Dartmouth Indians on Wednesday evening.
Turco’s milestone also proved the Old Colony League championship clincher for Barnstable, now 11-1 on the season and 4-0 in the league. The OCL title is the Red Raiders’ 16th straight, as Barnstable has won 16 state titles under Turco.
Senior captain Madison Sollows led Turco’s charges Wednesday with 14 kills, six blocks and four digs while freshman Riley James added 11 kills and 13 digs. Junior Danielle Derosier had a pair of game-highs, finishing with 14 digs and 15 service points, including two aces.
Senior captain Megan Dombrowski added three blocks while senior captain Michaela Cornwall had 12 digs, four kills and three blocks and sophomore Caroline Brodt added seven assists and seven digs.
Turco wins No. 600
Make that 600 wins in girls volleyball for Barnstable coach Tom Turco. He earned his 600th career victory as coach of the Barnstable girls volleyball team Wednesday night as the Red Raiders defeated Dartmouth 3-0 in South Dartmouth. Barnstable's 25-19, 25-22, 25-10 win also gave the Red Raiders their 16th Old Colony League championship under Turco, who is in his 28th year as the girls coach. In the season-opener this season, Turco recorded his 700th career overall win for both the Barnstable girls and boys teams combined. He won 110 matches in his eight-year stint as the Red Raiders boys head coach. The Barnstable (11-1) girls team is bidding for its 17th Division 1 State title this season.
CAPE COD TIMES
www.capecodonline.com, October 9, 2015
By Rob Duca
No. 3 Barnstable spikes No. 2 Newton North
HYANNIS – There haven’t been many nights – if any – during Barnstable’s long run of dominance in high school girls volleyball when the Red Raiders have faced a higher ranked opponent that had also beaten them in their previous meeting.
But that was the case Friday night when Newton North came to town. The Tigers arrived with the No. 2 ranking in the state and as defending Div. 1 state champions, the latter designation thanks partly to last fall’s state semifinal triumph over Barnstable.
And if that wasn’t enough motivation for head coach Tom Turco’s third-ranked team, the Red Raiders were still smarting from a tightly contested 3-2 loss to No. 1 Andover on Tuesday.
But there were nothing but smiles Friday night after an impressive 3-0 sweep over the Tigers that improved Barnstable’s record to 10-1.
“The girls reacted just the way I thought they would,” Turco said. “[Facing Newton North] certainly motivated them and they handled it the right way.
“This was a really big win. Andover was a tough loss. The point differential was only three points, and when you get that, it’s an evenly matched contest. We just had to make plays. Tonight was a total team effort. Everybody made big plays.”
The Red Raiders got off to a great start in the opening game, rattling off 11 straight points for a 16-6 lead en route to an easy 25-11 win. Michaela Cornwall was at the service line for 10 of the points, while freshman sensation Riley James and senior Madison Sollows were dominant at the net. James repeatedly blasted away for kills and Sollows consistently scored points off strategically placed tips.
After falling behind 5-1 in the second game, the Red Raiders fought their way back to a 5-5 tie and took a 7-6 lead on a kill from Sollows. With the game still tight at 15-13, the Tigers began making errors in the face of Barnstable’s relentless net pressure, and the Red Raiders moved out to a 19-14 advantage. Danielle Derosier, Ashley McCarthy, Cornwall and James were all instrumental in the surge, providing some spectacular digs to keep points alive.
Derosier finished with a team-high 15 digs, while McCarthy and Cornwall each had eight and James contributed seven.
The Tigers pulled to within four points at 21-17 before the Red Raiders got hot again, eventually winning the game, 25-18.
“The scores were pretty much in our favor in the first two games and that’s what we needed to do,” Turco said. “We needed to go out there, establish ourselves right away and take control of the match.”
Completing the sweep proved difficult even after the Red Raiders ripped off the first five points of the third game. The Tigers showed their championship pedigree, refusing to go away quietly. They roared back to take a 14-12 edge before Barnstable regained momentum with five straight points. The Red Raiders led 23-18 before the Tigers rebounded once again, pulling to 23-21.
But James, who finished with 12 kills, added two final blasts for a 25-22 win. “[James] is a little bit above her years,” Turco said with a wry smile. “She has a lot to learn but she’s playing really well.”
Sollows also had a big night, leading the Red Raiders with 15 kills.
“Madison was really smart at the net. She was picking up on the block and tipping the ball for points,” Turco said.
It wasn’t exactly payback for last year’s state semifinal loss to the Tigers, but it was a victory that kept the Red Raiders solidly in the conversation as a serious title contender. “Things are starting to take shape,” Turco said.
CAPE COD TIMES
www.capecodonline.com, October 7, 2015
Barnstable 3, Bridgewater-Raynham 0
The Red Raiders rebounded from a loss to top-ranked Andover on Tuesday with a 25-12, 25-15, 25-19 win over the Trojans in Hyannis.
Madison Sollows led the way for Barnstable (9-1) with 12 kills while Michaela Cornwall added 11 kills and six digs and Riley James had eight kills.
Ashley McCarthy (17 assists) and Caroline Brodt (16 assists) spread the offense around, with Sarah Higgins leading the Red Raiders at the service line with 10 service points. Jen Peacock added seven points at the line.
Barnstable, the No. 3 team in the state, hosts Newton North, the No. 2 team in the state, on Friday.
CAPE COD TIMES
www.capecodonline.com, October 6, 2015
Andover edges Barnstable in battle of titans
ANDOVER - Madison Sollows and Riley James combined 34 kills and 32 digs, but No. 3 Barnstable fell to top-ranked Andover on Tuesday evening.
Andover won 25-17, 21-25, 25-21, 16-25, 15-11. Andover (9-0) finished second in the 2014 Division 1 state tournament, losing in the championship to Newton North, which eliminated Barnstable (8-1) in the state semifinals. Barnstable hosts Newton North, the No. 2 team in Division 1, on Friday.
Michaela Cornwall had 10 kills for Barnstable, and Sara Higgins had 12 service points and two aces. Danielle Derosier had 10 service points and 36 digs, and Savannah Halperin had 10 digs.
James also had 13 service points. Sollows kicked in eight digs.
Ashley McCarthy anchored the offense with 36 assists, adding eight digs on defense. Caroline Brodt had 11 assists.
Unbeaten Barnstable makes quick work of Dennis-Yarmouth
Photos by RON SCHLOERB/CAPE COD TIMES
SOUTH YARMOUTH - It wasn’t supposed to be so lopsided when Barnstable traveled to Dennis-Yarmouth to take on the Dolphins in a Mid-Cape volleyball showdown, but with the precision of a surgeon, the visiting Red Raiders sliced their way to a quick, decisive 3-0 win that took less than one hour to complete. Barnstable (8-0) never trailed in the match and was tied only once, 4-4 in the opening game before rolling to the victory, 25-10, 25-9, 25-9.
The match marked the return to regular action from another of the hobbled Raiders who missed the first seven matches of the season with a balky ankle, senior co-captain Michaela Cornwall.
“This was the first match where we have have had everyone available to us,” said Barnstable coach Tom Turco. “It makes a difference. It allows us to do a lot of things that give us an advantage.”
It all started for the Raiders with the play of junior Danielle Desrosier, who was strong in defending serves from the Dolphins.
“It all starts with Dani getting a lot into system,” Turco explained. “She did a solid job of putting us in position to make the key plays.”
With Desrosier putting the ball up front to Ashley McCarthy, that allowed the senior setter to chalk up 24 assists, many of them to another senior, Madison Sollows, who recorded 12 kills, and to freshman Riley James, who had 10 kills. Cornwall chipped in with five kills as did Megan Dombrowski.
Besides getting set plays started, Desrosier had an impressive day of serving. She took over after Barnstable had regained the serve following D-Y’s tying the opening game 4-4. Desrosier then ran off seven straight service points and the Raiders never looked back the rest of the match. Desrosier finished the day with 17 service points including three aces. She also had eight digs on the defensive end.
For D-Y (6-3, 4-0 ACL), not much went right. After the Dolphins tied the opening game at 4-4 with a solid job of serving done by eighth-grader Josie Deluga, the next five times the Dolphins got the serve, they failed to add to their score as the Raider defenders came with three blocks that turned the serve back to Barnstable and a ferocious kill shot from Sollows.
One thing that hurt the host team were the many shots into the net that killed any hopes of climbing back into the match. In the third game alone, six points went to Barnstable off D-Y balls that went into the net.
“This was not how we normally play,” said D-Y coach Dru Sisson. “”It seemed like everybody was trying to do it all by themselves instead of as a team. I’m not unhappy with the play by our team, I just wish we could have been more productive.”
After Barnstable jumped out to a 17-5 advantage in the middle game, the Raider bench saw plenty of action. Caroline Brodt took advantage of her opportunity with seven assists, four digs and 10 service points. Jen Peacock added four digs and Savannah Halperin chipped in with eight digs.
“We have a tough stretch of games starting next Tuesday at No. 1-ranked Andover,” Turco said. “We’re going to need everybody healthy and ready to play. This will give us a good indication as to where we are at this stage of the season.”
CAPE COD TIMES
www.capecodonline.com, September 29, 2015
Barnstable 3, Medfield 0
Barnstable 3, Medfield 0: Danielle Derosier led an excellent defensive effort by the Red Raiders with a game-high 15 digs while also recording 17 service points in the sweep in Medfield.
Ashley McCarthy had 26 assists and Caroline Brodt added eight in Barnstable’s 25-21, 25-12, 25-11 win.
Madison Sollows had 14 kills, two aces and two blocks for the Red Raiders (7-0) while Riley James recorded 13 kills and seven digs. Megan Dombrowski and Ingrid Murphy each had four kills.
Savannah Halperin contributed to the strong defensive effort with nine digs for Barnstable while Sara Higgins came off the bench to contribute 10 service points.
CAPE COD TIMES
www.capecodonline.com, September 24, 2015
Barnstable 3, Falmouth 0
The Red Raiders won for the second time in as many nights, this time beating the Clippers in Falmouth 25-8, 25-11, 25-9.
Madison Sollows led Barnstable (6-0), who beat Dartmouth 3-1 on Tuesday evening, with 14 kills and four digs against Falmouth (0-5).
Riley James added seven kills and seven digs while Bridget Murphy had four kills, Caroline Brodt had 16 assists and five digs, Ashley McCarthy had 12 assists and 13 service points, with five aces, Jen Peacock had eight points, with a pair of aces, and Sarah Higgins and Savannah Halperin added six digs each.
Lilly Paine had nine serve receive digs for the Clippers while Kerry Shanahan added 20 digs and Natalie Gagnon and Mattie Madsen contributed a pair of blocks each.
The Clippers host D-Y while Barnstable is at Medfield on Tuesday.
CAPE COD TIMES
www.capecodonline.com, September 23, 2015
By Geoff Converse
gconverse@capecodonline.com
STILL UNBEATEN
Barnstable wins showdown, defeats Dartmouth in first 'true' home match
Madison Sollows of Barnstable spikes the ball past Victoria LeBree of Dartmouth in Wednesday night's high school volleyball match at Barnstable. Sollows, a team captain, led the Red Raiders with 33 kills in their 3-1 victory. Go to capecodtimes.com/photos to view a photo gallery.
Megan Dombrowski (33) and Ashley McCarthy of Barnstable celebrate after the Red Raiders defeated Dartmouth, three games to one.
RON SCHLOERB/CAPE COD TIMES
HYANNIS - In a showdown of unbeaten volleyball teams Wednesday night, Dartmouth threw a scare into Barnstable before the host Red Raiders stiffened to take the match 3-1 in their first time on the Raiders’ home floor this season.
The usual cast of characters shined for the Raiders - Madison Sollows, Riley James, Ashley McCarthy and Caroline Brodt - but it was the return to action by co-captain Megan Dombrowski and the word that another captain, Michaela Cornwall, is just days away from returning from injury that made this win even sweeter.
Dartmouth entered the game riding a 6-0 start to the season, all the wins by scores of 3-0 including beating rival New Bedford. The Indians had upset on their mind and after jumping out to a lead in the opening game the intensity level rose a notch for the visitors.
However, the Raiders do not lose at home very often and with a decent-sized home crowd on hand, this year’s version of the volleyball team was not about to let that happen. The gym floor needed to be repaired and it was just recently approved for play, which is why this game was the first “true” home tilt.
Barnstable (5-0) won the match, 25-18, 25-17, 20-25, 25-19 with the final two points putting the exclamation point on the victory as freshman Riley James recorded back-to-back thunderous kill shots to lock up the win.
Those two kills were part of the 15 total that James recorded along with 11 digs. Sollows, a senior captain, led the Raider offense with 33 kills, many of those set up by another senior captain, Ashley McCarthy, who recorded 33 assists and 14 digs, and by sophomore Caroline Brodt, who recorded 13 assists.
“This was a nice win for us,” said Barnstable head coach Tom Turco. “We are coming back from numerous injuries. I thought our young kids played well.”
After the Raiders vaulted to a 2-0 lead, it appeared that they might have taken their foot off the gas pedal and Dartmouth took advantage with a spirited win in the third game. The fourth game was intense until Barnstable ran off six of the last seven points to lock up the win.
Playing well for Dartmouth was senior captain Bailey Peach, who put the team on her back and did all she could to keep them close to the Raiders. Peach finished the night with 28 kills.
“She’s been a starter for us since she was a sophomore,” said Dartmouth coach Rachel Lassey. “Every single time we have needed her to step up she has answered the call. She works hard and is a real leader. One of these days we’re going to walk out of here with a win, but that didn’t happen today. That’s a solid team Tom has. We had an opening, but couldn’t break through it.”
Besides the offensive stars, Barnstable had a decent game defensively from junior Danielle Desrosier, who had 14 digs and the duo of Ingrid Murphy and Abbie Hatch, who each recorded eight digs.
CAPE COD TIMES
www.capecodonline.com, September 21, 2015
Barnstable States Case
HYANNIS - Senior captain Madison Sollows knocked down 17 kills while freshman Riley James added 11 in the Barnstable Red Raiders’ 25-20, 25-12, 25-19 win over the previously unbeaten Case Cardinals in girls volleyball on Monday evening.
Sollows had five blocks and five digs to go along with her 17 kills for Barnstable (4-0). James added 11 digs and 12 service points, with three aces at the line.
Senior captain Ashley McCarthy spread the offense with 24 assists while adding 14 points at the line and seven digs on defense.
Senior captain Savannah Halperin added six digs defensively as the Red Raiders handed Case (5-1) its first loss.
CAPE COD TIMES
www.capecodonline.com, September 16, 2015
Barnstable 3, Bridgewater-Raynham 0
Barnstable 3, Bridgewater-Raynham 0: Madison Sollows knocked down 15 kills while Riley James added nine kills, nine digs and 19 service points in the Red Raiders 25-15, 25-20, 25-13 win over the Trojans in Bridgewater. Ashley McCarthy sparked the offense with 16 assists while Caroline Brodt added eight for Barnstable (3-0) while Sollows added six digs and three blocks. Danielle Derosier proved the defensive star, finishing with a match high 18 digs, while added 14 points, including two aces, at the service line. Bridgewater-Raynham is 3-1.
CAPE COD TIMES
www.capecodonline.com, September 15, 2015
Red Raiders top defending Div. 2 champions
HOPKINTON -- Madison Sollows had 29 kills, 13 service points, a block and 15 digs to lead the Barnstable Red Raiders past Hopkinton, 3-1, in Tuesday’s battle of top-five teams. The fifth-ranked Red Raiders rallied after dropping the opening set to beat the third-ranked Hillers 24-26, 26-24, 25-17, 25-14.
Riley James had 16 kills, nine digs and two blocks against the defending Division 2 state champions. Ingrid Murphy had 11 kills, and Jen Peacock kicked in four blocks and 12 service points.
Barnstable (2-0) setter Ashley McCarthy recorded 48 assists.
CAPE COD TIMES
www.capecodonline.com, September 11, 2015
700 wins began in 1988 for Turco
By Matt Goisman
Tom Turco’s career as a varsity volleyball head coach didn’t exactly start well. The 1988 Barnstable Red Raiders went just 5-11, and Turco said that first season left him questioning whether or not coaching was the right career path.
A meeting with then-athletic director Steve Goveia got Turco back on track. A 28-year career of unparalleled success ensued, the Red Raiders winning 16 state championships with Turco at the helm.
Barnstable defeated (Lawrence) Central Catholic 3-2 on Wednesday at Dennis-Yarmouth to give Turco his 700th win as a head coach. He has now won 590 matches with the girls, plus 110 more during an eight-year stint as the Barnstable boys head coach.
“I’m glad that Steve Goveia encouraged me to stay and give it a second year,” Turco said. “He helped me change my philosophy on coaching and the next year we were 20-2. I became more organized as a coach and I had higher behavioral expectations of my athletes both on and off the court. We worked a lot harder. Practices were a lot more demanding.”
Those higher expectations are still a key component of his approach. Barnstable’s athletes are encouraged to analyze and critique themselves with the same fervor Turco might offer as coach. Turco makes video from matches available for players to view at home, then has them discuss what they saw at subsequent team meetings.
“When you see yourself making a mistake, try to figure out what you did, were you late in transition, were you in the wrong spot on the court,” Turco said. “My kids, the players, took away from (Central Catholic), according to them, that sometimes you have to work really, really hard to get things.”
Despite the milestone, Turco was quick to credit it to his players.
“Seven hundred wins, but I never served the ball, I never passed a ball and never hit a ball,” Turco said. “In all 700 wins, they’re the ones who got the job done.”
CAPE COD TIMES
www.capecodonline.com, September 9, 2015
Barnstable Wins Season Opener
SOUTH YARMOUTH - Senior captain Madison Sollows knocked down 27 kills and blocked three Central Catholic shots, leading the Barnstable Red Raiders over Central Catholic, 3-2 at Dennis-Yarmouth High School on Wednesday evening.
Barnstable won with scores of 25-13, 18-25, 25-18, 20-25, 15-13 in a match that lasted roughly 2½ hours.
Freshman Riley James added eight kills to the Red Raiders’ offense while senior Jen Peacock had six kills. The Barnstable senior stepped up down the stretch, particularly on defense to pull out the win.
Central Catholic, who lost to Barnstable in last season’s opener 3-0, played a consistent match, not conceding many points to the Red Raiders while missing only a few serves.
Senior Ashley McCarthy helped spread the offense around with 36 assists while providing 15 digs defensively. Junior Danielle Derosier added 24 digs on defense in the win.
By Paul Godfrey
pgodfrey@capecodonline.com
Division 1 state championships for Barnstable High School. On Saturday, the third-year coach at Sandwich High School brought her Sandwich Blue Knights back to her alma mater to see where her program stacks up against the Red Raiders and 12 other schools.
While Labor Day weekend is unofficially called the end of summer, you could call Saturday the unofficial start of the high school volleyball season. The Red Raiders hosted the seventh annual Barnstable Volleyball Play Day with 14 schools, including six from the Cape, competing in all-day scrimmages that lasted from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Among the Cape schools joining Barnstable and Sandwich were Bourne, Dennis-Yarmouth, Falmouth and Sturgis East. Each squad competed in seven 40-minute matches over the course of the day on four courts in the Barnstable Field House.
With the schools having just finished the first full week of practice, it was an opportunity for each coach to assess where their team is at against different competition. Or similar to what Barnstable coach Tom Turco said, a day that is like having everything from the first scrimmage to the dress rehearsal all wrapped into one.
“It’s like four preseason games in one day,” said Turco. “It’s a good coaching opportunity and a good learning opportunity. You really see your kids play.”
For Parker, who is heading into her third season at Sandwich, it’s a measuring stick on where her program is at the start of its third varsity season.
“It’s always fun coming back here,” said Parker, who graduated from Barnstable in 2008. “It was really good to see different levels of play and playing of bunch of teams that have had programs for so long - like Barnstable.”
The Blue Knights have qualified for the state tournament in each of the last two seasons, winning a tournament game both years. Sandwich lost seven seniors from its 2014 club that went 13-6.
“We’re kind of young,” said Parker. “We have a couple of freshmen that are playing and have some sophomores that are hitters.”
Dennis-Yarmouth coach Dru Sisson had six seniors and 11 underclassmen at Saturday’s scrimmage and is looking forward to getting back to practice to prepare for Thursday’s opener against Bourne.
"It’s a day of learning lineups and who’s going to play where and what the rotations will be,” said Sisson, whose Dolphins won the Atlantic Coast League title last year. “You take away what you need to learn and work on as a team - it’s an awesome opportunity,”
Falmouth doesn’t begin its regular season until a week from Monday, but after making cuts on Friday, coach Amira Tranchell was able to get a full day of looking at who her team was heading into the season.
“I think it’s great because I can get all my girls in and there’s enough time to get different looks,” said Tranchell, a 2008 graduate from Falmouth High School. “It’s a nice way to get everyone some game time action. There are also a lot of schools that we play during the season here and you can get a gauge on where they are at.”
Barnstable graduated four seniors from the 2014 team that advanced to the Div. 1 State semifinals and would like to add a 17th banner to the 16 state champion ones that are on the gym wall. But just like every other team that was there, Saturday was all about teaching and getting better.
“By the end of this day, I always thought that a lot of questions are answered,” said Turco. “You get to see kids play a lot all day and then you can go back and hopefully correct the mistakes.”
CAPE COD TIMES
www.capecodonline.com, September 2, 2015
Barnstable's seniors ready to lead Red Raiders toward state title contention
By Matt Goisman
mgoisman@capecodonline.com
Megan Dombrowski, one of the seniors on this year's Barnstable High School volleyball team,
congratulates players after a 3-on-3 drill Monday.
Barnstable High School girls volleyball coach Ton Turco, center,
has led the Red Raiders to 16 state championships.
HYANNIS -- Barnstable seniors Madison Sollows and Megan Dombrowski have been varsity volleyball players since they were freshmen. Two of the team’s three returning Old Colony League All-Stars, they still remember the 2012 season when five seniors helped lead the Red Raiders to a 21-1 record and state championship.
“It was a pretty close connection because the seniors did a really good job leading that year,” Sollows said. “I think people looked up to them like crazy.”
“They’re your mentors and there’s a lot to keep track of and have to learn about just the way the program works,” Dombrowski added. “They were all incredible players.”
The situation has now reversed. Sollows and Dombrowski, along with Savannah Halperin, Jen Peacock, Ashley McCarthy and returning OCL All-Star Michaela Cornwall, comprise this year’s senior class, and it’s their turn to take charge.
“I used to be so amazed by all the seniors when I was like an eighth-grader,” McCarthy said. ““It’s crazy that I always looked up to everyone and now I’m in that spot.”
The Red Raiders take being a volleyball senior very seriously. The seniors are the oldest players, sure, and often have the most prior varsity experience.
But the leadership demands placed upon them go far beyond simply playing volleyball. Early on, team-building meetings are conducted in which every player states her goals for the upcoming season. The seniors lead the way in these meetings that can last upwards of three hours, helping turn all those individual goals into the team goals that will be the core of their culture and identity.
The 2015 fall volleyball season has just begun, but you can already hear the seniors taking charge on the court. They’re organizing the offensive sets, calling out encouragement and bringing in their squads to celebrate key blocks, aces or kills.
“When you’re a senior, you feel like you’re responsible for everything,” Cornwall said. “And you also feel more confident, so you feel ready to lead.”
Peacock added, “It’s still kind of hitting us.”.
Even Sollows, sidelined Monday with a pulled muscle that Barnstable coach Tom Turco said might keep her out of an upcoming scrimmage but shouldn’t be a long-term concern, was still cheering on from the sidelines as she ran the clock during drills.
Sollows led the team in kills in 2014 and is expected to be a force at middle hitter again this year.
“You have to create this bond that will last the whole year,” Sollows said. “That’s usually what this part of the year is like. You’re just taking in underclassmen and you’re making a family.”
Sollows was on the court for last year’s season-ending loss in the state semifinals. That loss clearly factors heavily into these seniors’ goals. They want a state championship and they don’t want to lose a match.
“I feel like because of the reputation Barnstable volleyball has, it’s a bigger deal if you don’t win the state championship than if you do,” Dombrowski said. “That was our main goal, and for us not to reach it was frustrating.”
If the Red Raiders meet these two goals, they’ll mimic what they accomplished in 2013. It’s a memory still fresh in the seniors’ minds almost two years later, and one likely made brighter after failing to repeat it last year.
“Winning sophomore year just makes me want to have that again so badly,” McCarthy said. “It was the best moment of my life. The best feeling.”
Strong senior leadership is intertwined with Barnstable’s on-the-court success. In 29 years as head coach, Turco’s teams have won 16 state championships beginning in 1993. Turco said he often prefers to not designate captains, instead dividing the burden of responsibility equally between all the seniors.
“It’s their turn to lead and they don’t have to be anybody different than who they are,” Turco said. “Some people are just quiet people who show up early and work hard. Some people lead by creating energy on the court.”
For the Red Raiders to claim another state title, the seniors have to buy into Turco’s notion that “there’s a huge responsibility for a senior in this program” that “this is it for them.”
So far, they seem to be doing exactly that. |