The Oneida Daily Dispatch (Oneida, NY)
Bears win championship rematch with Red Devils
Chittenango dropped the first game of a rematch of last year’s sectional final but beat VVS 3-1.
VERONA>> The Chittenango boys volleyball team entered this season in a new position as the defending Section III Class B champion and got off to a strong start, winning its first two matches 3- 0.
Thursday, the team passed its biggest early season test yet.
The Bears dropped the first set to Vernon-Verona-Sherrill in a rematch of last year’s sectional final but rallied back, winning 22-25, 25-15, 25-20, 25-17 to extend their winning streak to 21 straight matches.
“It’s great to get rid of the jitters,” said Chittenango coach Michael Dziedzic. “You expect to lose a set here and there. To lose one to VVS, it just means we’re in a tough match and we got to bring out the real bear in us.
“We want to make sure that everybody knows that we’re not a one-and- done program and we’re here to stay.”
Grant Czarnecki led the Chittenango offense with 15 kills in the victory, many coming in late-
game situations. Cooper Young and Jacob Graham each had seven digs for the visitors’ defense.
James Renwick led VVS’ defense with 10 digs while Owen Rose tallied 22 assists in defeat.
Despite the loss, firstyear coach Alex Rose was impressed with how his Red Devils stacked up against the defending champion.
“I think we did a lot better than everybody was expecting,” he said. “I’m very proud of how the boys did.
We knew what their strengths were and we rose to the occasion. We used our strengths and we were really able to rise above what I expected.”
The Bears took early control of the first game when Czarnecki capped a 5-0 run with kills on backto-back points, giving his team a 7-3 edge. The advantage would grow to 13-5 before VVS began its comeback.
The hosts closed within four points at 17-13 despite several serving errors and then scored four straight, tying the game on an ace by James Renwick. A block by Nathan Brewer and kills from Aidan Robinson and Angelo Zumpano helped the Red Devils take the lead and pull away for a 1-0 lead in the match.
“They’re the first tough opponent that we’ve come up against,” said Dziedzic. “It was really just a little rework of the alignment, checking what we saw in the first one, make little corrections here and there, just a little bit of a twist of things.”
Chittenango showed no ill effects from dropping the first game, scoring the first six points of the second.
The Bears opened up their largest lead at 22-8 before surrendering six consecutive points but bouncing back to take the game and even the match.
Matthew DeNova’s kill on the opening point of the third game gave VVS a lead they would hold for an extended period. The Red Devil’s largest advantage came at 8-2 but the Bears rallied back, tying the score at 13-13. Brewer’s kill put the hosts back in front but the visitors used a 4- 0 run to pull in front for the first time in the game. Czarnecki then took over, dominating at the net to help his team pull away and take the game, as well as a 2-1 lead in the match.
The Bears never trailed in the fourth game but the Red Devils stayed close throughout, tying the score six times. With the score even at 15-15, Ryan Pitt had a key kill for Chittenango on a free ball that Griffen Smith followed with an ace that landed just inside the sideline. Czarnecki again put the game away, tallying two kills and three blocks during the visitors’ match-clinching 7-1 run.
“It feels good,” he said. “The whole team feels the energy, the whole staff, and it’s just great.”