Long Beach falls in semifinals

The third time wasn’t a charm for Long Beach’s boys’ volleyball team when it came to Massapequa.            

The Marines gave the top-seeded Chiefs a scare early in their Nassau Class A semifinal matchup at Herricks High School on May 25, but fell in straight sets (28-30, 17-25, 21-25) to the eventual county champions.           

“We were more competitive this time, and they played well,” Long Beach coach Bill Gibson said. “They beat us during the league season and in pool play at the Plainview Tournament.

“I would’ve liked to see what we could’ve done with another month. We were still improving, but Massapequa just peaked at the right time.”

Massapequa was led by the brother combination of Brian and Christian Smith. Brian had 10 kills and 18 assists and Christian added 13 kills, 17 assists and five aces. The Marines, seeded No. 4, got a big day from their own Smith. Senior Nick Smith, an All-County selection, had 17 kills. 

“I thought Nick was the best player on the court,” Gibson said of the Baruch College-bound hitter. “He was the biggest reason why we were one of the better teams late in the year.”

Long Beach came within inches of winning the first set, and for about 10 seconds celebrated, but a questionable call went against it and evened the score at 26. Though it lost in heartbreaking fashion, it came back to open up an 11-5 lead in the second game before the Chiefs started to click on all cylinders.

“They’ve probably got the two best setters in the county, and they’re great in transition,” Gibson said of Massapequa, which struggled in the finals but still managed to grind out a five-set win over Port Washington. “They’re pretty smooth going from defense to offense.”

Senior setter Jon Yunger had 33 assists and 12 digs for the Marines, who were outscored 20-6 to close the second set. Senior Andreas Butte added five blocks.            

Long Beach (12-6 overall, 11-5 in Conference I) entered the semifinals on a three-match winning streak, including a sweep of No. 5 Syosset in the quarterfinals. Senior Alex Morgenstern had 11 kills, five digs and three aces and Smith added 10 kills in the 25-16, 25-22, 25-19 playoff victory.           

With 11 seniors on the roster and another year starting the program in the face with a switch to the fall on tap, Gibson said he’s unsure what September will bring. “Hopefully we’ll have everyone back that we’d normally expect,” he said. “Some kids play other sports in the fall and have a tough choice to make.”