Simon says ‘Smash'. Vardeh dominant for Newton North in Division 1 boys' volleyball quarterfinal win

Boston Globe

07-06-2025

Paul Nelson puts it over to finish the match 23-25, 25-13, 25-17, 25-15 for
Defending champion Tigers head back to the semifinals!
— AJ (@aj_traub)
'We know we're the better team,' Vardeh said. 'When we play to the best of our ability, nobody can beat us.'
Added Fox: [Vardeh] showed he's the best player in the state today. He showed why he's been a starter for us the last four years. He just did what he was supposed to.'
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It's not the first time the Tigers (16-7) have leaned heavily on Vardeh, but Fox made the plan to keep setting him until Lexington (20-3) found a way to stop him. The Minutemen never did, even sending a triple block at one point only for Vardeh to sail the ball over their heads anyway.
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'We want to spread around, but after I saw they couldn't stop him, we were like 'foot on the gas,'' Fox said, 'But that's what I expected of him.
'He showed a lot of greatness these past four years, and this game really cemented it for me.'
Senior Paul Nelson (50 assists, 4 kills, 2 blocks) has just been a setter this season, but also found juniors Peter Reale (7 kills, 2 blocks) and Amaris Cotto (8 kills).
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'One of my better setting games for sure,' Nelson said. 'I wouldn't say I was expecting to be at this level, the first game back [after playing libero the past couple matches], but I was pleasantly surprised.'
The Tigers will face either No. 1 Brookline or No. 9 Acton-Boxborough at Concord-Carlisle High on Tuesday, as they look to prove that the team can get back to the finals without Athlete of the Year Adam Christianson and All-Scholastic middle Sam Huang, who graduated following last year's championship.
'We were playing really well,' Nelson said. 'I think if you take that to our next games, we will win.'
Simon Vardeh (16) and his Newton North teammates celebrated their Final Four trophy.
Matthew J. Lee/Globe Staff
Newton North's Peter Reale (13) forces the ball past Lexington High Mahin Rajesgh.
Matthew J. Lee/Globe Staff
Lexington's High Nicholas Sanchez de Rojas (4) delivers a dig against Newton North.
Matthew J. Lee/Globe Staff
Needham 3, Taunton 1
— In an electric setting, the third-seeded Rockets (21-5) closed out their four-set quarterfinal win with hard-earning 25-22 clincher over No. 27 Taunton (18-6).
'[There were] a lot of voices in the gym, a lot of people yelling, our fans and theirs,' Neeham senior Andrew Kurdziel said. 'Feeding off the crowd is something we're great at.'
The Rockets were on track for a sweep, with seniors Andrew Kurdziel (11 kills, 2 aces, 3 blocks) and McDonald (8 kills) working overtime at the net to take the first two sets. But Taunton turned up the pressure, supported by its spirited fans, and held onto their lead throughout the third set.
'We knew this game was going be really tough,' Needham senior Will McDonald said. 'It wasn't a surprise that they were gonna have a lot of energy. We just knew we [had to] fight back.'
Taunton (18-6) bulldozed its way through the tournament and carried that energy into Friday's match. Senior Travis Johnson and junior Syre Duverna delivered 13 kills apiece to help force a fourth set. But ultimately, there was no stopping Needham's attack.
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'I don't think Needham saw our best effort today,' Taunton coach Toby Chaperon said. 'I think we kind of ran out of gas.'
Needham took the lead early in the fourth set, but struggled to hold on as Taunton's senior libero, Dantae Bauer, combated the Rockets' frenzied attacks with 16 digs. But, their efforts fell short at the hands of junior Matty Cloonan (14 kills, 6 digs).
'We like the way our guys hung in there,' Needham coach Dave Powell said. 'I'm glad that we responded to their intensity with our own.'
Alexa Podalsky reported from Needham
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AJ Traub can be reached at