The squeaking of shoes, the blowing of a whistle, the constant calling of “mine” and “got it” in the ranging voices of high school boys. These were the sounds that filled the gym Tuesday, Mar. 10 as Horizon Honors took on Northwest Christian in a volleyball match. Eager to make a comeback from the less-than-satisfactory outcome of last week’s game, the Eagles came out strong and ready to fight.

The very first play of the game set a high-intensity mindset for the rest of the match. Sophomore Trevor Weary, number 19, started his team off by earning two points in a row from powerful kills. He and senior Patrick McPherson, number 12, continued to lead their team to victory throughout the entire match with their A+ blocking and well-placed hits. After a long, suspenseful volley, the Horizon Honors Eagles took the first set, 25 to 21.

When asked about staying motivated during a game, Weary stated, “It’s all about staying positive, you know, working together as a team. There’s not just one person on the court, there’s six of us. And that goes for everybody, even the ones on the bench have to be cheering and they have to be positive!”

Although the Northwest Christian Crusaders began the second set serving, it did not take the boys of Horizon Honors long to get the ball back. Directly following the first sideout, senior Tony Salatino, number two, performed a run of serves that brought the score to ten to one in Horizon Honors’ favor. Thanks to this early advantage, the Eagles maintained their lead through the remainder of the second set and finished it off, 25 to 13.

The third set was when the nerves started to kick in. This was the same position the Eagles were in last week: they won the first two sets but when the third set came around, the energy dropped and their opponents stole the game from them. Content to not let his happen again, the boys took off from the third set with kill after kill. At first they maintained both the lead and their high energy, but the Crusaders were fighting just as hard and eventually the score was tied 17 to 17. However instead of shutting down and losing focus, the boys picked up their intensity even more. A long, hard battle brought the score to 24 to 23 with Northwest Christian in the lead, but it soon tied at 24. Salatino served to finish up the match; an ace and an error (by the other team) finished the third and final set with an exciting score of 26 to 24.

He admitted when talking about going up to serve at such a crucial point in the game, “I was a little bit nervous. I wanted to make sure my serve went in and to not mess up. [When going up to serve] I try to not worry about it, I just go out there and do it!” And that’s what he and the rest of the Eagles did.

The next home match for boys volleyball will be a JV game on Thursday, Mar. 12 against Seton Catholic Prep. Both Varsity and JV will play at home on Tuesday, Mar. 24, against Williams Field.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uCgt1_DjocM&feature=youtu.be

Gallery • 7 Photos

Photo Courtesy of Zach Asato

Horizon Honors Varsity Boys' Volleyball played on March 10, 2015. Many Horizon students came out to support the team.