Wantagh raises the bar

The Wantagh girls’ volleyball team got an early taste of competing against a top-flight program in five-set loss to current unbeaten South Side on Sept. 9, which Warriors coach Dan O’Shea hopes pushes the envelope for a championship run this fall.

“They do everything very well and they're consistent and that's where we need to be if we want to get where we want to get to,” O’Shea said of South Side, which entered the week at 7-0 and hasn’t dropped a set since the Wantagh match. “It was kind of a blessing to play that match early because that way we know we’re beatable and we have to continue to work hard to go where we want to go,” he added.

The Warriors won four matches in a row after the South Side defeat before a 3-0 loss to defending Long Island Class A champion Massapequa on Oct. 1. Wantagh is aiming for a return to the county finals, where it fell last year in a heartbreaking five-set loss to Mineola after having two match points in the fourth set.

Leading the charge to bring Wantagh back to championship contention this season are a core group of seniors fueled to script ending including senior middle hitter Kaitlin Dillon, who has emerged as a big piece of the offense in her fourth season on varsity. Dillon had 13 kills in a 3-1 win at Syosset on Sept. 16.

Setter Juliette Azzariti and outside hitter Sadie Reich are also integral part of Wangtagh’s leadership this season as senior co-captains. Reich has committed to play college volleyball at Seton Hall and is slated to graduate early to begin training with the Big East program in January.

“This is like her last hurrah,” said O'Shea of Reich, who recorded her 1,000 career kill in a sweep of Long Beach on Sept. 12. “She leads the team in almost every category every year and does a fantastic job.”

Seniors Krista Dowling and Skylar Mondelli have also stepped up in their final seasons of high school volleyball at the middle and right side hitters, respectively. Sophomore outside hitter Kylie Hoffman and freshman Siena Muller have also become key parts of the offense as underclassmen

Junior liberos Sabrina Asadurian and Deanna Piscopo are playing a focal point in the Warriors’ defense. For the first time this season teams are able to utilize two liberos in the lineup as long as not on the court at the same time.

Wantagh visits Long Beach Oct. 10 and then will have nearly a week off before returning to court at home for an Oct. 16 matchup against Syosset at 6:45 p.m.

As a Conference I school, Wantagh is assured of one of the top four seeds for the upcoming Class A playoffs along with South Side, Mineola and Lynbrook with the top two earning first round byes. O’Shea said “consistency” in all facets of the game will be the major key toward whether Wantagh raises a county championship trophy for the first time since winning the 2021 Long Island title.