West Hempstead reaches semis

When the 2015 boys’ volleyball season began, the West Hempstead Rams felt they had a lot to prove. The team was coming off an uncharacteristic season that yielded just two victories, and its players were eager to get back on the court to prove their merit.

The Rams caught fire after an up-and-down beginning to the campaign, and a strong second half of the season brought them all the way to the county semifinals. 

However, dreams of a county title came to an end as West Hempstead, despite a gallant effort, fell to eventual county champion Bellmore JFK in a semifinal round match played at Long Beach High School. 

Head coach Andrew Wilson was happy with the team’s turnaround. “It was a very successful season for us,” Wilson said. “We just kept getting better and better as the year went along. It was a combination of having depth, playing as a team, and everyone, including me, having the same goal. We wanted to get one of the top four seeds and a home playoff game. The guys all improved individually, and we got so much better as a team.”

Winning four of their last five conference matches enabled the Rams to reach their goal of hosting a Class B quarterfinal round match. They earned the fourth seed in Class B, and the right to host conference rival No. 5 Great Neck North.

The home team wasn’t very welcoming to the visiting Blazers. Senior middle hitter Greg Schulze had 20 kills and four blocks, and junior setter Seiji Clark had 49 assists to lead the Rams to a three-game sweep. Senior Matt Gitter (16) and junior Kyle Suffa combined for 26 kills. The teams split their two meetings in the regular season.

“Each time we played Great Neck North, we played them tougher than the previous time,” Wilson said. “We lost the first time in five sets at their place, and then we beat them in four at home later in the season. We just kept improving.”

While the Rams lost all three matches against Bellmore JFK, they proved to be a worthy opponent. Six of the 10 games the teams played were decided by two points. In recognition of his solid play in the postseason, Schulze was named to the Class B All-Tournament team. 

Wilson was quick to mention the accomplishments of players who do not ordinarily find their names in the box score. All season long, West Hempstead received tremendous defense from libero Tommy Farrell, and fellow seniors Khalil Pirmohamed and Bobby Riggiano. 

“I’m cautiously optimistic,” Wilson said. “We do lose eight seniors, but the underclassmen improved considerably during the season. The guys who are coming back got a lot of time in games, and they always worked hard in practice to be ready when they were called on to play. The conference is always tough, so you never know, but I feel real good about next season.”