Jericho girls volleyball holds place atop Nassau Conference AA-II behind Grace Chen's 10 kills
Grace Chen of Jericho bumps during a Nassau volleyball match against host New Hyde Park on Monday. Credit: Dawn McCormick
The Jericho girls volleyball team is playing every match with an extreme sense of urgency. With only one playoff spot up for grabs in Nassau Conference AA-II, each game carries massive importance, and Tuesday night wasn’t any different.
Grace Chen had 10 kills as Jericho defeated host New Hyde Park, 3-0 (25-14, 25-13, 27-25), to keep its place atop the conference.
Chen’s third kill of the first set put the Jayhawks ahead 14-6. Jericho closed the opening game on a 6-2 run, as Emma Zhu’s ace gave it the final point.
“Any game we don’t win basically means we miss the playoffs,” Zhu said. “We come into each game with tons of energy and give it our all. We’re very happy with the result today.”
Sonia Ngai had five kills and an ace in the second set. Ngai and Zhu had back-to-back kills to close out the second game and a 6-0 run for the Jayhawks.
A kill by Kayden Erazo and Jasmine Rambissoon’s ace gave New Hyde Park a 15-14 lead in the third set. Chen’s kill and April Zhang’s block gave Jericho its first match point at 24-22.
“This match definitely gives us a ton of confidence moving forward,” Jericho coach Mikayla Porr said. “We know we have some tough matches ahead, but this gives us a good feeling about what’s to come.”
Erazo and Rambissoon combined for back-to-back kills to tie the third set at 24. Chen and Ngai then had consecutive kills to clinch the match for the Jayhawks.
“Every single match and every single point means so much to these girls,” Porr said. “They’re going nuts on the sideline for every point and they’re really such a supportive group.”
Ngai had eight kills and four aces for Jericho (13-1). Erazo had six kills and an ace for New Hyde Park (4-10).
“The energy in here was great today,” Zhu said. “Their crowd was screaming and cheering, but I like to use that as fuel for myself. It makes me play even harder.”
Jericho plays Bethpage on Thursday. The Golden Eagles began Tuesday tied with the Jayhawks atop the standings. Jericho took the first matchup, 3-1. Thursday’s winner may decide who gets the conference’s playoff spot.
“We’re definitely prepared for them,” Chen said. “They have a middle blocker that can pretty much do everything, and we know they have many threats on the team. We’ve dealt with them before, so we’ll be ready.”
Christopher Matias covers high school sports for Newsday after spending time in Athletic Facilities and Operation at St. John’s and in Sports Information at CUNY York college.
