Tough ending for Long Beach

One of the great things about athletics is that you just don’t know what you’re going to see.

The match for Nassau County Class A volleyball supremacy between the boys from Long Beach and Massapequa had a little of everything; the intensity of a championship prize fight, immeasurable drama, the thrill of victory and, of course, the agony of defeat.

In a match that was truly one for the ages, top-ranked Massapequa made a remarkable comeback and then had just enough to outlast the No. 2 Marines 21-25, 23-25, 25-22, 25-16, 17-15 to reclaim the Class A title Nov. 8 at SUNY-Old Westbury.

Senior outside hitter Timothy Drake’s blistering kill ended the marathon match and capped off Massapequa’s comeback from two sets down. Long Beach, the only team to defeat the Chiefs during the regular season, finished with a record of 16-2. Massapequa (17-1) advanced to the Long Island title game against Eastport-South Manor.

Long Beach coach Bill Gibson said he knew where things turned. “They weren’t running their middles in the opening sets and we were able to play our style,” Gibson said. “We’re very different teams with contrasting styles. They’re huge at the net, so you don’t want to allow them to do what they want to do. The guys worked real hard all season. They always do. But, our goal wasn’t to just get to this game. The goal was to win it.”

Paced by solid play from seniors Sammy Gibson, Eddie Roesch (22 digs), Chris Scandole, setter Jared Weissberg, and junior Ben Naouai (12 kills, eight digs), the Marines never relinquished the lead in the opening set. A block by senior Matthew Mascolo ended the first set. Weissberg had 41 assists in the match

The Chiefs ran out to a 9-2 lead to start the second set, but Long Beach crept back into it. Back-to-back kills by junior Jack Palmer (10 digs, four kills) and Weissberg gave the Marines their first lead at 19-18.

Timely blocks by Peter Toutoulis and Patrick Wing (12 blocks, 16 kills) helped Massapequa stave off a pair of match points, but Naouai ended the set with a kill.

With John Ronan, Wing, Toutoulis, and Drake, who had 16 kills, swinging at the net, the Chiefs won a tightly contested third set before dominating the fourth, setting the stage for the deciding set.

The Marines looked rejuvenated in the fifth set. They held leads of 10-5, 12-7 and 13-9, and had three opportunities at match point, but couldn’t put the Chiefs away. Scandole finished with 17 kills, 18 digs, and two service aces. Gibson had 13 kills and nine digs.