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Boston Globe
07-06-2025
- Sport
- Boston Globe
Simon says ‘Smash'. Vardeh dominant for Newton North in Division 1 boys' volleyball quarterfinal win
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.' Advertisement 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. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up '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). Advertisement '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. Advertisement '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 . AJ Traub can be reached at
Boston Globe
18-05-2025
- Sport
- Boston Globe
St. John's Prep, Newton North girls repeat as Division 1 Relays champions
'Respect the competition, because Division 1 is so freaking competitive. It's so hard.' Junior Ahmir Hykel, sophomore Dayvian Sullivan, and juniors Aaron Radke and Andrew McManmon set a meet record with a blazing finish in the 4x100-meter relay (41.89). The Eagles were first in the sprint medley (3:31.78), and senior Anthony Ragosa won the shot put (53 feet, 2¾ inches). Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up BC High's 4x1600 team opened the day with a meet-record 17:47.58 with the quartet of John Wilson, Owen Geagan, Theo Weiss, and Greg McGrath. It was the 23rd fastest time in the country, according to the MSTCA. Advertisement John Wilson (left cemter) is congratulated by his relay mates after finishing off BC High's victory in the 4x1600 race, setting a new Division 1 relay meet record of 17:47.58. Debee Tlumacki In the girls' meet, Newton North defended its title with 82 points, followed by Lexington (74) and Weymouth (60). 'We have a deep roster of jumpers and sprinters, and they all performed to expectation today,' said Newton North coach Mike Travers. 'We practiced hard for the last 10 days. They knew what they wanted to do and they performed.' Advertisement In the 4x200, sophomores Sophie Finkelstein and Mia Mescher, and juniors Bella Mangada and Brooke Bennett won the relay with a school-record finish in 1:43.95. Travers said that time qualifies them for the National Championship meet in Philadelphia. Central Catholic's Kyla Breslin has the lead on Newton North's Ciara Evans here, but the Tiger runner tracked her down to capture victory in the sprint medley relay in 4:08.30. Debee Tlumacki 'Going in, we were a bit nervous because it's normally head-to-head with Lexington. They're a really good team,' said Bennett. 'But we had a lot of confidence.' 'Lexington pushes us the most,' added Mangada. 'Having them as competition helps us run faster times.' Lillian Hayduk provided an exciting stretch for Weymouth. First she ran third in the 4x100 shuttle hurldes. Teammates Leah Goodine, Christina Marshall, and Ainsley Weber joined in for a time of 1:06.02 to win by two-hundredths of a second over Natick. Hayduk then went from the finish line to her next event, the long jump, where she tied for 26th in an event won by Lexington junior Aubrey Deardorf (19-0). 'Lillian probably had the best hurdle race of her life, and five minutes later, she had to get on the board and jump big for us,' said Weymouth coach Mike Miller. 'All four of those girls ran incredible. I couldn't be prouder of them. They were amazing today.' The Lexington girls 4x1600 relay team celebrate their win, after clocking a combined time of 21:02.02, some 55 seconds ahead of second-place Weymouth. Debee Tlumacki Lenny Rowe can be reached at
Boston Globe
17-05-2025
- Sport
- Boston Globe
Globe Top 20 boys' volleyball poll: Acton-Boxborough ascending as Taunton tumbles out
Milford won five-setters against Newton North is missing multiple elite players, and it showed when the Tigers were Related : Advertisement Records on scores reported to the Globe. The Globe's Top 20 boys' volleyball poll The Globe poll as of May 17, 2025. Teams were selected by the Globe sports staff. No. Team Record Previous 1. Brookline 14-1-0 1 2. Natick 13-2-0 2 3. Needham 13-4-0 3 4. Newton North 12-6-0 4 5. Lexington 17-1-0 5 6. Wayland 12-6-0 6 7. Cambridge 11-5-0 9 8. Acton-Boxborough 10-5-0 13 9. Milford 11-7-0 7 10. St. John's Prep 12-5-0 10 11. New Bedford 13-2-0 12 12. Lowell 14-2-0 11 13. Chelmsford 12-3-0 15 14. Methuen 13-3-0 14 15. Newton South 7-6-0 16 16. St. John's (S) 8-8-0 17 17. Winchester 11-5-0 18 18. BC High 8-6-0 19 19. Greater Lowell 13-3-0 20 20. Boston Latin 9-5-0 – AJ Traub can be reached at
Boston Globe
26-04-2025
- Sport
- Boston Globe
Globe Top 20 boys' volleyball poll: Milford makes biggest jump
In the few games they had this past week, the top 10 held serve. St. John's Prep and St. John's (Shrewsbury) couldn't overtake Newton North, Needham, or Cambridge. Brookline and East Longmeadow remain the two undefeated teams remaining, outside of charter schools. Related : Just outside the Top 20, Greater New Bedford (6-5) made a statement with Advertisement The Globe's Top 20 boys' volleyball poll The Globe poll as of April 26, 2025. Teams were selected by the Globe sports staff. No. Team Record Previous 1. Brookline 8-0-0 1 2. Newton North 7-2-0 2 3. Needham 7-2-0 3 4. Natick 6-2-0 4 5. Lexington 9-1-0 5 6. St. John's (Shrewsbury) 5-6-0 7 7. St. John's Prep 5-4-0 8 8. Wayland 6-5-0 9 9. Milford 8-2-0 15 10. Cambridge 8-2-0 6 11. Lowell 8-1-0 10 12. New Bedford 8-2-0 11 13. Acton-Boxborough 4-3-0 12 14. Chelmsford 6-2-0 13 15. Methuen 7-2-0 17 16. BC High 4-5-0 14 17. Winchester 6-2-0 16 18. Newton South 5-2-0 20 19. Latin Academy 5-4-0 18 20. O'Bryant 4-4-0 19 AJ Traub can be reached at
Boston Globe
29-03-2025
- Sport
- Boston Globe
The Globe's first Top 20 boys' volleyball poll: Bay State Conference domination
The Warriors, are followed by BSC rivals Natick, Needham, and defending Division 1 champion Newton North. It won't be long before the Bay State behemoths begin facing off, and every matchup could be a thriller. Related : After falling a set short of winning the Division 2 tournament, the Finn Bell-led Wayland Warriors, ranked sixth, come in as a team that can compete with some of the state's best. No. 16 Latin Academy and No. 17 Greater Lowell make up a second tier of Division 2 teams, along with O'Bryant. Advertisement The Globe's Top boys' volleyball poll The Globe poll as of March 29, 2025. Teams were selected by the Globe sports staff. No. Team Last season's rec. 1. Brookline 15-8 2. Natick 18-4 3. Needham 24-3 4. Newton North 22-3 5. St. John's Prep 11-9 6. Wayland 16-9 7. Lexington 15-6 8. BC High 20-3 9. New Bedford 21-1 10. St. John's (S) 9-11 11. Chelmsford 15-7 12. Milford 16-6 13. Acton-Boxborough 13-7 14. Newton South 5-14 15. Lowell 18-4 16. Latin Academy 16-7 17. Greater Lowell 17-5 18. Andover 15-8 19. Wellesley 10-9 20. O'Bryant 8-11 AJ Traub can be reached at
