It's all set up for glory for the Plainedge girls volleyball team.
The Red Devils are coming off a trip to the Nassau County Class A finals where it lost to eventual state champion South Side.
Plainedge graduated just one senior and returned seven players, including many of its top guns. It is led by the senior Big 3 of Ava Nitsch, Savannah Speicher and Angelina Puglisi.
Plus, the Red Devils have been buoyed by the exemplary performance from a freshman, middle hitter Mia Accatino, who gamely replaced their lone graduated player from the 2025 team, Mia DiMarco.
Plainedge has raced to a 9-1 start, 5-1 in Conference 2.
"We had a chance last year and returning almost the same team, we have a shot to go all the way,'' Plainedge coach Colin Fratrik said. "We feel we are one of the top teams in Class A.''
It all starts with Nitsch, a 5-foot-9 setter who is a two-time All-County player and made All-State in 2025. She'll play college at Eastern University (Philadelphia).
"She's one of the premier volleyball players on the Island,'' Fratrik said. "She runs our offense, an incredible hitter, really good athlete,''
Nitsch has the school career record in assists by notching over 1,000. This year, she has bashed 23 aces and 55 kills with 130 assists, 72 digs.
"I want to give all the credit to my teammates,'' Nitsch said. "I wouldn't be able to set the ball the way I do without passes from (my teammates). Same thing with my assists. I put up a great ball but I wouldn't be able to get the assists without my hitters putting it down, finding the open spots.''
Her partner in crime is Speicher, a middle hitter and elite athlete who will play college softball. Nitsch and Speicher, a three-time All-County selection, have started since freshman year.
When a middle gets to the back row, often they are replaced by a libero. Not Speicher, who has 14 aces, 24 kills, 83 digs. "Her defense is her best attribute,'' Fratrick said. "She's one of our best defenders who covers a lot of ground and is a really good passer.''
An outside hitter, Puglisi is a three-year starter and All-County Honorable mention, with 13 aces, 45 kills, 107 digs. She plans to play college volleyball.
Accatino, the 6-foot-1 freshman, has been the big surprise (18 aces, a team-leading 71 kills, 10 blocks). One Mia left. Another Mia stepped right in.
"From Day 1 of practice, she's taken that position by storm,'' Fratrick said. "Extremely athletic. Offensively, she's taken our team to the next level.''
Last season, Accatino was on the middle-school team. "She's done a tremendous job to improve,'' Fratrick said. "From first day of tryouts, she earned trust of all our players -which is tough coming into a senior-heavy team.''
Two other underclassmen are excelling - junior outside hitter Kennedy Murnane (25 aces, 54 kills, 127 digs) and sophomore setter Mia Jordan (17 aces, 141 assists).
"I think we can go all the way as long as we're together as a unit,'' Nitsch said. "I think we make it to the states if we work hard. I love how together we are.''
The lone loss came Sept. 17 – a five-setter versus Mineola. The rematch is Oct. 8. "Was a tough loss but happy the way we competed,'' Fratrick said.
