The Whaler volleyball team found themselves on the brink of defeat through three sets during their match on Tuesday against the St. John Paul II Lions. The Whalers won the first set 25-20, but struggled in sets two and three to consistently pass and string points together, losing the sets 20-25 and 19-25 respectively.
“They needed to have some squabbles, have some fights and say ‘hey we need to do better,’” head coach Andrew Viselli said. “There were times where we aren’t passing. We aren’t keeping our cool. They were feeling self-conscious so I just told them they know how to play volleyball just go out and play. If you make a mistake who cares, just go out and play.”
The Whalers didn’t have much room for error in the fourth set so Viselli said he had a simple message for his team ahead of the pivotal set.
“I told them they couldn’t play any worse than how they were playing and that they could play so much better,” he said. “I told them they could continue pointing fingers or go out and salvage their season, which they did. You saw these players go out and ball.”
The Whalers ultimately won that fourth set 25-23. Freshman setter Bianca Santos had the best game of her young career with a career-high 36 assists. She carried that strong play into the fifth and final set, allowing outside hitters Chloe Marrero and Kacey Riseborough to take over the game with their powerful hits.
“Bianca needed to realize as a setter she can put anything up and her outside hitters will take care of it,” Viselli said. “Kacey and Chloe put on an absolute clinic and I told them that. I told them how they excelled and gave a clinic on how to be an outside hitter. That was really nice. They stepped up and led this team to a victory. We didn’t have a rhythm at first but they got more used to Bianca’s sets and the timing of it all as the game went on.”
The Whalers are now 8-4 this season and are one win away from clinching a spot in the state tournament. They will host the Sturgis East Storm on Thursday at 4 pm.
In other Whaler sports news from Tuesday,
Golf Beats Rising Tide
The Whaler golf team was dominate in their Tuesday matchup with the Rising Tide Herons, winning 5.5-.5.
Evan Belanger was the Whalers best golfer on the day, winning his match and shooting a 36. Henry Kathawala won his matchup and shot a 39. Cole Chambers won his matchup and shot a 41. Aidan Sullivan won his matchup and shot a 42. Cosmo Tedeschi won his matchup and shot a 44.
Cole Evens tied his matchup but finished with the second best score on the Whaler’s team, shooting a 38.
The Whalers are now 5-8 this season and will travel to take on the Nauset Warriors on Thursday at 3:30 pm.
Boys Soccer Shut Out By Sturgis East
The Whaler boys soccer team came into Tuesday’s match against the Sturgis East Storm buzzing. They had a record of 4-0-1 in their last five games while outscoring their opponents 16-5 during that stretch. But that offense disappeared in Tuesday’s game against the Storm, leading to Nantucket being shut out for the third time this season in a 1-0 loss.
“The boys hit the woodwork three times and once in the waning moments on a diving header from Yeison (Gregorio Castro),” head coach Rich Brannigan II said. “Sturgis East defended valiantly. We couldn’t beat their defense or goalkeeper.”
The Whalers outshot the Storm 19-3 in the game.
Nantucket will look to bounce back with a win when they host the Falmouth Clippers, who they beat 5-3 earlier this season, on Thursday at 4 pm.
Girls Cross Country Wins, Boys Lose
The Whaler girls cross country team won their meet against the Monomoy Sharks 24-33 Tuesday afternoon while the boys lost 34-22. The Whalers will have some time to rest up before their next meet, which is on Wednesday, October 20th at 4 pm when they host the Rising Tide Herons.
Field Hockey Trounced By Nauset
The Whaler field hockey team lost to the Nauset Warriors 5-0 on the road Tuesday afternoon. Head coach Dan Weber said the score wasn’t reflective of how his team performed.
“We very much played up to their level and carried the play at times,” he said. “We were aggressive and did a great job of playing our game and getting the ball outside. We just need to find the scoring touch in front of the goal when we get great chances like we did today.”
Nauset forward Lauren Knight, a sophomore, scored all five goals for the Warriors.
“Unfortunately for our sake she played fantastic and finished their chances,” Weber said. “I’m very proud of the team. If we play like we did today it should produce positive results going forward.”
The Whalers will look to get back into the win column when they travel to take on the Monomoy Sharks Thursday at 4 pm.
