Valley Stream North running on all cylinders

The perfect season is still possible. 

Four more victories last week for the Valley Stream North boys volleyball team lifted them to 10-0. Six games remain, including a huge one on Thursday versus powerful Locust Valley, which has one loss. 

If the Spartans get by Locust Valley like it did last month, a 16-0 regular season is plausible. No VSN boys’ squad has ever finished unbeaten.

“I think it would mean a lot to the kids,’’ coach George Karahalios said. “Every week we set our mini goals. We’ve been able to achieve them. We have an ultimate goal in mind.’’

An unbeaten season would give North a conference championship in 2D. But a target has been placed on its back. The Spartans have dropped two sets all season.

“They realize what’s going on, that we have something special going on,’’ Karahalios said. “This has been one of the easier teams for me to coach. They listen, they adjust, pick each other up, have good energy and positive vibes.’’

Last season’s club went 9-7. The team lost seven seniors and returned three starters. Not usually a recipe for a record-setting 2023. “Everyone improved from last year,’’ Karahalios said. “ We’ve had nice additions.’’ 

The longtime coach who once piloted rivals Valley Stream South and Central cited offseason clinics in which players attended for three-hour sessions. 

The biggest varsity addition has been Mark De Prado, a sophomore who played JV last season and stepped into a starting – and starring – role as outside hitter. “He’s performed greatly, great spark for this team,’’ Karahalios said. 

De Prado has 112 kills and 25 aces. Karahalios said he hasn’t seen a sophomore perform at such a high level since his own senior, middle hitter, Danny Kosior. “He’s a dominant hitter,” the coach said. “He’s never left the court in three years. He’s an excellent hitter, passer, consistent server. He can really do it all.’’

The other senior starter is Murtaza Saibay, an outside hitter with 71 kills, 21 aces. Kosior has notched 115 kills. 23 blocks and 29 aces.

The duo have become leaders. 

“The dynamic of the team has grown a lot from last year,’’ Karahalios said. “Players who weren’t in that leadership seat last year have really stepped up and filled that role. It’s paid great dividends.’’

Credit the team’s serving prowess for a lot of its success. The Spartans’ service rate is 92 percent. “We really focus on getting the ball over, play a rally,’’ Karahalios said. “Limiting our mistakes on serve is a key component to us.

Junior middle hitter Nick Lang has also made a big jump and has collected 60 kills, 14 blocks and 13 aces. “He’s grown so much from last year,’’ Karahalios said. “The speed of the game is different on varsity.’’

Junior setter Erik Ziemblicki is another key element. He leads Nassau County with 401 assists. “He gets everything going for us,’’ said Karahalios, who also lauded the strong defensive play of junior libero Liam Corbett, who was the JV setter a year ago. 

This is Karahalios’ fourth season at VSN. “We’re having the mindset that we have a goal in our mind we want to complete,’’ Karahalios said. “We know every game will be more difficult as we go on. Practice is getting more intense. We are throwing in some relaxing activities to have fun to get their minds off volleyball.’’