MILLTOWN — Saint Mark’s held off a challenge from Aspira for a boys volleyball sweep on March 22. Set scores were 25-21, 25-19, and 25-21.
A hitting error on Aspira gave Saint Mark’s a 3-2 lead in the opening set, and that kicked off a 6-0 run. It included two aces from Ruben Rodriguez, and the final point came on a backhand kill from Rex Haigh. The Spartans continued to score on their serve; the first included a service winner by Daniel Pagano and an ace from Mitchell Holland that extended the lead to 19-5.
Haigh added a kill a few minutes later to give Saint Mark’s set point at 24-10, but the Wolves weren’t ready to concede. With Aleksey Cortes on serve, they went on a long run, nearly closing the gap entirely. Cortes had a few aces along the way, and a net violation on the Spartans got Aspira to within three at 24-21. But Charles Lord sent a bump over the net that found the floor, and the Spartans took the set.
Pagano put Saint Mark’s on the board in the second set with a push to the corner, but Aspira would stay close in this set. The Wolves tied the score, 8-8, on a Spartans hitting error, but Rodriguez sent a kill down the middle to put Saint Mark’s back on top. The set was tied for the final time at 13-13 before the Spartans began to pull away.
A 4-0 run capped by a Rodriguez kill made it 20-15. The set ended when Haigh was able to send a kill just over the tape and to the floor.
The Wolves had a 4-3 lead in the third after a backhand by Adriel Aviles-Rivera, but the Spartans scored the next seven points to take control. Saint Mark’s got to match point at 24-19, and Aspira saved twice before a service error brought the contest to an end.
Holland led the Spartans with five kills, while Rodriguez had four kills and five aces. Saint Mark’s improved to 2-0 and plays the third of a six-game season-opening home stand on March 25 against Delcastle at 5:30 p.m.
No statistics were available for Aspira. The Wolves (1-2) visit Glasgow on Monday at 4 p.m.
Photos by Mike Lang.
