By ANDREW McCLURE
After a thrilling 14-25, 25-20, 26-24, 16-25, 25-21 victory over Valley Stream Central, Malverne is 8-4 in Nassau Conference ABC-V and has an excellent chance of finishing in second place. Xilia Parache had 36 assists to lead the Lady Mules.
Kim Rossi, in her fourth year as coach, was excited about the latest triumph. “When we played Central earlier this season, we weren’t talking enough,” Rossi said. “This time, while we did have some down moments in the fourth game, we were calling out more and communicating very well. When we play like a team, it makes all the difference.” Central knocked off Malverne in four sets in September.
Since losing three straight matches in the first month of the season, the Lady Mules have been victorious in six of their last seven. Part of the reason for the early season losing string was the fact Rossi lost six seniors to graduation and the team was playing shorthanded thanks to an injury to Katherine Mathieu. The 6-foot junior middle hitter missed the first three weeks.
However, the injury to Mathieu, who has 26 blocks and 45 kills despite missing half the team’s games, did bring about some positive changes. “We found out some things about our team,” Rossi said. “We had to make some adjustments which helped with the growth of the team.” One surprise was the play of junior Janelle Rivera filling in for Mathieu. Rivera, a second-year player with a ton of potential, stepped into a new position and showed her value and versatility.
The play of senior captains Galit Korman and Parache, both four-year starters, has been outstanding. The setters average a combined 32 assists per match. Parache has 43 service aces. Korman was a scholar-athlete as a junior.
The beneficiaries of the superb setting are junior Brianna Cunningham and Mathieu. Cunningham, a tremendous athlete who played a key role on Malverne’s county championship basketball team, has 72 kills to lead the Lady Mules at the net, and is also tops in aces with 48. Talented sophomore Shakara Richardson, a back row specialist, has also been a top server. Also making a strong contribution is senior Deanna Langdon, a first-year varsity player.
Despite the fact the Lady Mules have already been eliminated from the possibility of postseason play in 2008, Rossi is pleased with the progress of the program. “The girls are a highly motivated, hardworking group,” Rossi said. “The team showed a lot early on when one of the key players was injured. They found out how much each player contributes and that it takes a team effort to be successful.”
Malverne closes the season on Friday with a home match against Westbury at 4:15 p.m.
Comments about this story? TBellissimo@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 204.
