By Jack Hooker
Senior captain Craig Kaufman led the team with 18 digs as the Lions defeated Lincoln Sudbury 3-0 Friday night.
South won the first set 25-9, the second set 25-12, and finished it off with a quick 25-7 victory to send Lincoln Sudbury packing.
Senior Ben Snyder gave a boost to the team with seven kills, and sophomore Jonathan Lee helped bring on the Lions’ victory with two aces.
Coach Todd Elwell felt confident going into the game and had no complaints about how it turned out.
“We had a lot of hitters that were really hot,” he said. “[Lincoln Sudbury] had an off day and we were just on.”
After Friday’s victory South is now 17-2, the best record in the Dual County League (DCL) and the fifth best record in the state.
Senior captain Zach Halpryn is pleased about how the game turned out and says he, along with the rest of the team, is feeling confident going into the playoffs.
“It wasn’t our best game, but we passed well,” Halpryn said. “They just weren’t very good and we are really good.”
According to Elwell, the team has plenty of blocking ability, defense behind the blocking, and decent serve and attack options. However, he feels like the team still has a few things to work on.
“If we can pass well we will have options on attacking; it’s kill or be killed, all set up by your passing,” Elwell said. “On a given day we can beat anyone in the state but we just have to be consistent.”
Halpryn agrees the team needs to work on their consistency.
“Often we will go on streaks, but it just kills us when the other team goes on a run,” he said. “We also need to work on communication and not let the balls go right in between us.
“If you asked me at the beginning of the season I would have just said ‘Let’s get to the sectional championship’,” Elwell said. “But now that we’ve played some of the top teams in the state, why not go for it; let’s win a state championship.”
