Freeport girls volleyball defeated Uniondale in three straight sets Oct. 1, to earn its second victory in Nassau Class AAA. After getting swept in three of their first four matches against Syosset, Massapequa, and Oceanside, it was a much needed bounce-back effort at home for the Red Devils.
“It was good for the kids because we've been getting pounded by the Massapequas and the Syossets and teams like that,” coach Lolita Beathea said. “It was a good win for us.”
In the first set, Freeport set the tone with several strings of aces from the likes of juniors Sharon Montoya and Dayna Davis, as well as senior Joyce Gomez. Despite a fairly even beginning, the Red Devils eventually pulled ahead 16-8 and cruised to a 25-12 win.
Uniondale, now 1-4, didn’t go quietly, growing so loud at times as to negate Freeport’s home-court advantage. The Knights jumped out to a 7-2 lead early in the second set and extended to lead by six later on.
It would have been easy for the Red Devils to let the set slip away, but senior captain Madison Harris said settling in came easy.
“We gather ourselves, definitely, stopped overthinking,” Harris said. “The serves just kept going over, and we kept doing the right thing, and that’s how we got the second set.”
Harris, who secured back-to-back aces to keep Freeport within range early in the set, excelled in all facets at middle striker, blocking well and securing kills throughout the contest.
Down 18-12, Freeport came roaring back, scoring eight unanswered points to take a 20-18 lead. Davis earned four aces during this stretch, while freshman Chidimma Njoku scored back-to-back kills on the outside. The Red Devils went on to win 25-19.
“I'm trying to teach them, when we get down, to still stay on top of the game because we can come back,” Beathea said. “That’s our problem, is coming back to win, which made this a nice one.”
Uniondale had its moments in the third set, but with their comeback bid all but extinguished, it became hard for the Knights to gain any traction. Freeport never trailed for the rest of the match, winning the final set 25-14.
In addition to Harris and Njoku, Beathea also praised sophomore Isabella Garcia, who distributed well throughout the match and created several key scoring chances.
Freeport’s only prior victory came in four sets against East Meadow and required the Red Devils to fight back from a 1-0 deficit and come away with a gritty third set to eventually win. Their triumph over Uniondale required some adversity, but barring a slow start in the second set, they were always in control.
Uniondale coach Dan Splendore said he was proud of his players’ determination in the second set, in which Freeport had to work hard to gain its lasting advantage.
“It's the best my girls have played in a while,” Splendore said. “Unfortunately, didn't get the job done, but I'm proud of the progress.”
Uniondale setter and senior captain Melanie Saravia led the Knights with three aces, six assists, two digs, and a kill. Senior Brielle James had a team-high four kills and seven digs.
