Eastern Mass. boys' volleyball: Globe Players of the Week for April 17-24
Anthony Rubim
, Greater Lawrence
— As the Reggies came back against a Greater Lowell team that had won the first matchup, the junior's 35 assists helped Greater Lawrence to a 15-13 fifth-set decision in the Commonwealth tilt.
Tuto Sampaio
, Winchester
— The senior captain knocked 21 kills in four sets as the Red & Black won the semifinal matchup of the ALS One Tournament over Greater New Bedford.
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Vitou Seng
, Lowell
— The junior amassed 45 assists and eight kills in four sets as the Red Raiders took down Greater Lowell in nonleague play. Teammates Logan Uy (56 digs) and Aundre Rivera (19 kills, 23 digs) also put up monster lines.
AJ Traub can be reached at
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Boston Globe
03-06-2025
- Boston Globe
Setter Parth Pawar notches 2,000th assist, guides Acton-Boxborough boys' volleyball to comeback win
Pawar joined the team a year after it went 0-10, and now has led the program to its second trip to the state quarterfinals (reached semifinals in 2014). He found classmates Matan Worcel (10 kills) and Obi Umeh (9 kills) on the attack, helping rebound from the first-set loss. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up 'Honestly, first-set nerves were definitely there. It was all about being confident,' Pawar said. 'With my sets and their swings, we were cautious … I was setting a bit off the net. Second set and on, we played with much more confidence. I was setting tighter which my hitters liked, more in tempo. My hitters took more aggressive swings, which helped.' Advertisement Darren Gwin was assistant coach to Mark Starr in the 2014 season, but guided A-B to this winning rally against the tough Wamps (16-6). 'I think the big thing for us was to stay calm and stay confident. Compete together,' Gwin said. 'We can be a really great team, and it came down to, no matter what happens, we need to smile, high-five, look at each other, and say we have each other's backs. When we were able to do that and not earn points for Braintree, good things ended up happening, especially when things got tight.' Advertisement A-B awaits the winner of No. 17 Newton South at No. 1 Brookline for its quarterfinal matchup. Division 2 State Latin Academy 3, Milton 0 — Timmy Lewis (9 kills), James Urbaez (8 kills, 6 aces), and Tri Duong (6 aces) led the No. 9 Dragons (12-10) to a first-round victory over No. 24 Milton (8-14). Wayland 3, Greater Lowell 1 — Finn Bell (21 kills, 2 aces), Dylan Engelhardt (9 kills, 4 aces, 3 blocks), and Zach O'Donnell (37 assists, 3 blocks, 3 kills) powered the No. 3 Warriors (14-8) over No. 14 Greater Lowell (18-4) in a second round matchup, 25-20, 25-18, 19-25, 25-8. Boys' tennis Division 1 State Newton North 3, Westford 2 — The Newton North boys' tennis team did just enough to advance in the Division 1 tournament Monday, as the fourth-seeded Tigers edged No. 13 Westford Academy, 3-2, in a second-round contest. Newton North (14-3) got wins from freshman Colin Hwang (6-2, 6-3), junior Warren Feldman (6-0, 6-0), and seniors doubles pair Jim Greene and Gabe Lubitz (6-1, 6-1) to oust the Ghosts (10-5). St. John's Prep 5, Belmont 0 — The top-seeded Eagles (19-0) swept No. 17 Belmont (12-10) in the second round with dominant singles wins from junior Rudr Malayya (6-1, 6-0), senior Jack Prokopis (6-0, 6-0), and senior Luke Free (6-0, 6-1). The Prep completed the sweep with doubles wins from senior Luke Prokopis and junior James de Buy Wenniger (6-1, 6-3), and juniors Wade Evitts and Evan Haykal (6-4, 6-0). Advertisement Girls' tennis Division 1 State Winchester 4, Needham 1 — The No. 8 Red & Black (17-3) earned a second-round victory over ninth-seeded Needham (14-5) behind singles wins from Daryana Skobeleva (6-1, 6-0) and Andrea Bilic (6-1, 7-5), and doubles wins from Esha Bhalla and Mia Lock (6-3, 6-2), and Cate Sheehan and Avery Machemer (6-0, 6-1). Division 2 State Duxbury 4, North Attleborough 1 — The 10th-seeded Dragons (16-4) earned a second-round victory over No. 7 North Attleborough (16-4) on the strength of singles wins from Sophia Smith (6-0, 6-1) and Anna Manganello (6-2, 6-3). Duxbury's doubles duos of Audrey Hubbs and Catherine Driscoll (2-6, 6-2, 6-3), and Tiffany Strachan and Lena Harati (6-1, 7-6 [7-4]) added key wins. Wayland 4, Marblehead 1 — The second-seeded Warriors (12-5) earned a second-round victory over No. 18 Marblehead (14-5) with wins from Elena Ton (6-0, 6-2), Olivia Todd (6-1, 6-0), Yumi Niimi (6-2, 6-1), and doubles pair Emi Niimi and Rhea Sethi (7-6 [7-5], 6-0). Westborough 5, Oliver Ames 0 — The sixth-seeded Rangers (13-5) earned a second-round sweep over 11th-seeded Oliver Ames (14-4) in a match highlighted by senior Gina Hajiseyedjavady's close win over fellow senior Hannah Farber (1-6, 6-2, 7-6 [12-10] at first singles. Westborough added singles wins with Diya Bhattacharya (6-0, 6-0), Rachel Dubrovsky (6-2, 6-2), and doubles wins from Sahasra Kommineni and Evelyn Wood-Dunfey (6-0, 6-1), and Ella Glasgow and Katie Xia (6-2, 6-1). Division 4 State Hamilton-Wenham 4, Millis 1 — The fourth-seeded Generals (15-2) won their second-round matchup over No. 13 Millis (11-9) with dominant singles wins from Naomi Provost (6-1, 6-0), Emily McIntosh (6-0, 6-0), and Charlotte Ireland (6-1, 6-0). Doubles pair Olivia Romans and Evelyn Esdaile added a 7-6 (7-4), 6-2 victory. Advertisement Ipswich 3, Sutton 2 — The No. 7 Tigers (14-4) notched a second-round victory over No. 10 Sutton (14-7) on the strength of their doubles pairs. Ipswich earned doubles wins from sisters Lila and Mae Borgman (6-3, 6-0), and Alex Marino and Frannie Hertz (6-0, 6-3). Sophie Johannknecht notched the lone singles win (6-1, 6-1). Henry Dinh-Price contributed to this report. AJ Traub can be reached at
Boston Globe
17-05-2025
- Boston Globe
By claiming at least a share of the Commonwealth crown, Greater Lawrence boys' volleyball is proving it's no underdog
'We were kind of known as underdogs,' said sophomore outside Jelisson Peguero . 'People thought it would be an easy win to go against us. We had the motivation, we had things to improve. We're going for the win.' Advertisement Anthony Rubim (left) has notched a lot of his 1,000-plus assists passing the ball to Janiel Vizcaino. Barry Chin/Globe Staff Though the season started with a four-set loss to defending conference champ Greater Lowell, the Reggies (12-4) made sure that would be their only Commonwealth setback when they won the fifth set, 15-13, in the rematch. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up Karla Mahoney was the JV coach last time Greater Lawrence stood atop the conference, with her husband, 2017 MAVCA Hall of Fame inductee Robert Mahoney , coaching. Now, she has a title too. 'It was an incredible feeling,' she said. 'All their hard work paid off. They earned it and they deserved it.' Greater Lowell can still earn a share of the conference crown, but it helped play a part in Greater Lawrence's rise too. Commonwealth coaches teamed up to create a summer program, in which each coach worked with athletes on the other teams, offering different perspectives. Advertisement It offered more playing time together, which Greater Lawrence players also found when they started going to South Common Park in Lawrence, sometimes playing against high-level locals. 'Playing outside of school was probably the biggest reason we came into the season with so much chemistry and hunger,' Rubim said. 'We know how good we are at our peaks. Seeing us play at the park is cool, but let's do it in a game when a title is on the line.' Coach Karla Mahoney took over the program from her husband, Robert, who led the Reggies to their last conference title. Barry Chin/Globe Staff Summer competition added a layer to Commonwealth battles, with coaches and players more familiar with each others' styles. Peguero said 'every single match' opposing coaches took him out of his comfort zone, but he's glad they did because it made him adapt. 'Every coach knew how I hit, where I hit. They adjusted to it,' he said. 'With my team's passes and the sets I was given, I was able to find the way around the block and, midseason, improve my options.' The girls' team improved as well from summer play, going from 6-13 in 2023 to 12-10 in 2024, reaching the Division 4 Round of 16. With players from each team managing the other, they lift each other up. Janiel Vizcaino , a manager in the fall, found that he learned communication skills from the girls. 'We have the momentum and the team,' said the junior middle hitter. 'We all came together.' Jelisson Peguero is a sophomore outside hitter for Greater Lawrence. Barry Chin/Globe Staff Senior Eliana Villa improved her skills playing with the boys, and the team seized the opportunity to tighten up defensively. 'For my season, the change from last year to this year was a 180,' she said. 'I'm not going to give us all the credit, but the energy on our side reflected to [the boys'] season. Our vibe and how we pushed for every win, it brought them to that CAC title.' Advertisement Mahoney has made it a mission to meld the two teams into one growing program. 'It's a big family,' she said. 'It was a really special girls' season. They left it all on the court. Every game, the boys were there . . . During the boys' season the girls are there . . . I love the relationships they built with each other.' Added assistant Raymond Pimentel : 'Players are buying into what we're telling them, trusting our decisions and coaching styles, and allowing us to mold them into more skillful, intelligent players.' Though the Reggies are still low (34th) in 'The team's morale, we were down,' said senior outside Joel De La Rosa , who had 17 kills in the conference-clinching match and 16 in the win over Greater Lowell. 'Coming up to the season after losing so much, we wanted to be better. You gain more from losing. 'We built so much chemistry for two years. We used that chemistry to win.' Many of the Greater Lawrence players put in extra time training over the summer and they're seeing that pay off this spring. Barry Chin/Globe Staff Set points • Newton North coach Nile Fox has a knack for getting his teams to perform at their best in the postseason. He has won titles in three of the last four spring/fall volleyball seasons. This year, it's trickier. All-Scholastic hitter Simon Vardeh headlines a handful of players out due to injury. Vardeh projects to be back for the postseason, but it's unknown how much of Newton North's potential we'll get to see. Advertisement The Tigers project to stay in the top four in the power rankings after building up a stellar record. • With just a week left and the postseason coming into focus, all eyes will be on the power rankings as teams anticipate tournament matchups. One trio of teams to keep an eye on: the Catholic Conference leaders. It has been a tumultuous year for St. John's Prep, BC High, and St. John's (Shrewsbury), in The Pioneers should get a boost from a sweep of Newton North, but the biggest factor is Gus McGonagle (finger injury). The hope is he can re-join his brother Francis , an All-Scholastic hitter, in time for the tournament. Matches to watch Monday, Lowell at Methuen, 5 p.m. — Lowell could wrap up the Merrimack Valley Conference with a win, but if not, these two and Chelmsford will have split with each other atop the league standings. Monday, No. 2 Natick at Cambridge, 5:30 p.m. — A nonleague matchup of top teams, pitting a pair of creative setters in Natick's Luke Dratch and Cambridge's Eric Su. Monday, No. 1 Brookline at No. 5 Lexington, 5:30 p.m. — Each team has just one loss and features outstanding hitting depth. Tuesday, No. 3 Needham at No. 2 Natick, 5:15 p.m. — The Redhawks have been on a roll after losing their first two matches. They avenged their defeat to Brookline, and will have a chance to do the same on senior night against the Rockets. Thursday, City final: O'Bryant vs. Latin Academy, 4 p.m. — Last season, BLA defeated O'Bryant twice in the regular season, but the Tigers won in five sets for the City League final. The same regular season has played out between the two ahead of the championship at Emmanuel College. Advertisement AJ Traub can be reached at
Boston Globe
10-05-2025
- Boston Globe
Globe Top 20 boys' volleyball poll: Despite loss, Brookline remains at No. 1
It was another productive week for Methuen. After The big win of the week, excluding the Bay State clashes, belonged to Greater Lowell, whose senior trio is clicking after a four-set victory over Acton-Boxborough. The Gryphons have won six in a row, which should improve their No. 25 power ranking in Division 2 (they were the 11-seed in last year's tournament). Related : Advertisement Records based on scores reported to the Globe. The Globe's Top 20 boys' volleyball poll The Globe poll as of May 10, 2025. Teams were selected by the Globe sports staff. No. Team Record Previous 1. Brookline 11-1-0 1 2. Natick 11-2-0 4 3. Needham 13-2-0 3 4. Newton North 12-3-0 2 5. Lexington 14-1-0 5 6. Wayland 10-5-0 6 7. Milford 9-6-0 7 8. Taunton 11-1-0 8 9. Cambridge 11-4-0 9 10. St. John's Prep 11-5-0 10 11. Lowell 12-1-0 12 12. New Bedford 10-2-0 13 13. Acton-Boxborough 7-5-0 14 14. Methuen 11-3-0 18 15. Chelmsford 9-3-0 15 16. Newton South 7-5-0 17 17. St. John's (S) 7-8-0 11 18. Winchester 11-3-0 16 19. BC High 7-6-0 19 20. Greater Lowell 13-3-0 – AJ Traub can be reached at
