Thursday, Apr. 30, marked the end of the second era of boys’ volleyball at Horizon Honors. Family and friends filled the gym to witness what would unravel to be a very eventful night. Not only were the Horizon Honors’ Eagles playing against the second-highest ranked team in their division, Hamilton High School, but they were also celebrating senior night, the last home game of the season.

Seniors Patrick McPherson, Kyle Hickie, Tony Salatino, and Zach Baker, accompanied by their parents, made their way to the center of the gym as sports director Nate Agostini called them up one by one. He spoke of each boy’s notable achievements throughout their high school career, as well as their plans for the future. Their coach, Lisa Barlow, wanted to thank each of the seniors; she said, “Overall our team has gone from zero to a hundred, and it’s thanks to the seniors for sure because they really really improved and helped all the other kids improve as well.”

After the senior night festivities, it was time to start the game.

The Eagles knew that a very tough game was ahead of them, but they kept a positive mindset throughout the match. Hamilton had some very talented front row hitters and won many points from their kills. However, the boys of Horizon Honors were doing a great job at the net themselves. Senior Patrick McPherson blocked several balls that resulted in a point and sophomore Trevor Weary also scored several points from his hits. However, Hamilton had a large run of serves starting right from the beginning and ended the first set with a score of 25 to 6.

The great blocking from the Eagles continued into the second set. McPherson and freshman Nate Hernandez both had a number of impressive blocks throughout the set, which proved helpful to their team. While the set began with Hamilton’s lead, they began making numerous errors, allowing the Eagles to catch up. Unfortunately the Hamilton Huskies maintained the lead throughout the rest of the set, and finished it up 25 to 16.

The third set was the closest and most intense of them all. Again, the successful blocking carried into the next set but senior Tony Salatino, libero, did a good job passing many of the hits that got past the front row. Weary was, once again, was able to score many points and junior James Tsai even got a run of serves including an ace, bringing his team to only a five point deficit. Both teams were playing quite scrappily and this led to some long, suspenseful rallies. But in the end, it was Hamilton that came out on top with a score of 25 to 21, the closest score of all three sets.

Despite the loss, the seniors were willing to share some final words regarding their last high school season. “Being here when the whole team started, being here for year one, is a great feeling,” Hickie said. McPherson added, “We have improved like crazy. I always thought that we were [like a family], but this season’s just brought us closer and closer together.” Salatino and Baker both agreed that they’ll miss the team, but they know all of the players have bright futures ahead of them.