Smithtown East (13-0) took on their cross town rivals, Smithtown West (6-7) Oct. 30 for another League II face-off. East beat West in their last match on Oct. 5.
Ryan Mahoney led a strong West team into the mix by winning the first game 24-26.This proved to be a wake-up call to East, who are not used to losing this season. Tyler Donofrio and Sean Baxley rallied their troops and came back to win 25-13 in the second game.
West would not be outdone and fought back to take game three by a score of 25-21. East showed signs of disbelief as they were being blocked by the West middles on their best efforts.
The next two games were classic East vs. West volleyball. Each point earned on either side of the net rarely came easy. Powerful hits, tremendous blocks and courageous dives kept the games close and the crowd and seated players and coaches reacting to every touch of the ball.
East went on to stay undefeated by taking the last two matches, 25-23 and 25-22. Seniors Tyler Donofrio had 21 kills and Dan Walsh notched 17 kills for East. Coach Aiello cherished the victory, but also used it as a reminder to her players that games such as these will be the norm in the upcoming playoff rounds. She applauded her team for overcoming a very formidable opponent in the West Team.
Smithtown East begins the playoff tournament by hosting Bayshore on Friday, Nov. 5 at Smithtown East High School.
