Kennedy Cougars roar to county title

Posted

After capturing their sixth Nassau County boys’ volleyball championship in the last eight years — and their third in the last four — on Nov. 12, the Kennedy Cougars dropped three tight sets (30-28, 25-22, 25-22) to Hauppauge in the Long Island Class B Championship last Saturday at SUNY Old Westbury.

Junior middle blocker Owen Bradley, an All-County honoree, racked up eight kills against Hauppauge, while junior setter Josh Levine had 32 assists and a pair of kills.

“We invested a lot in that first set trying to come back,” Kennedy coach Dennis Ringel said. “When [Hauppauge] ended up winning, it was tough mentally and emotionally. It certainly wasn’t for a lack of effort. It was just one of those days we didn’t have our best match.”

Effort and teamwork were the driving forces behind Kennedy’s success, which included an 18-4 record and a straight set victory over No. 3 Jericho (25-18, 25-20, 25-19) in the Nassau Class B final.

Senior outside hitter Michael Ianniello earned the playoff tournament’s Most Valuable Player award after piling up 15 kills in the series against the Jayhawks. Included among his hardware this season are All County honors and a spot on the All New York State Tournament Team. After missing a majority of his junior campaign due to injury, Ianniello returned and developed into one of the team’s leaders and best performers on the court.

“For him to come back his senior year and have [the season] he did and win the MVP speaks a lot [about him] and is a great reward for his hard work.”

Senior outside hitter Jonah Zeitlin, an All-County honoree who was also named to the All-Tournament team, had 10 kills against Jericho. Levine, an All-County honoree, was named to All Tournament, while senior outside hitter Harrison Ivers was an All-County honoree and named All-Tournament honorable mention. Senior libero Harrison Marcus and senior middle blocker Peter Cuttitta were named All-Division players.

“This is one of those seasons where it’s been special because they’ve come a long way from where they were at the beginning,” Ringel said. “For a coach, those are some of the most gratifying [moments].”

Page 1 / 2