Thursday, October 1, 2026
The South Side girls’ volleyball team has unfinished business.
Last fall, the Cyclones captured the Nassau County championship and opened the Long Island title match with a first-set win over Sayville. But the celebration was short-lived, as the Golden Flashes roared back to take the next three sets and the crown.
That painful loss has fueled a new season — and the Cyclones have come out sharp. Behind a balanced lineup and veteran leadership, they swept Lynbrook and Seaford to open 2025 before outlasting Wantagh in a five-set battle on Sept. 16. Four days later, they handled North Shore in three straight at home to improve to 4-0.
“Oh yeah, they’re hungry,” coach Steve Mariano said. “They want revenge, but I have to preach to them that it’s one game at a time. You have to peak at the right time. We're working through a little bit of growing pains here and there. We have made nice progress, but they definitely want redemption for last year.”
South Side returns many familiar faces but is still adjusting to the loss of two of its most dominant players, whom both graduated. Mariano said this year’s roster feels very different, but also deep.
“It’s very interchangeable,” Mariano said. “If I have someone struggling, I can take them out and put someone else in and not have a drop-off in performance.”
Key roles are being filled by underclassmen. Sydney Marshall has stepped into a starting outside hitter spot and fellow sophomore Audrey Reilly, a lefty on the right side, has added scoring punch. Mariano said both were junior varsity players just a year ago.
“She's doing a good job,” Mariano said of Marshall. “She's really stepping up on the outside while my other starter from last year is injured and she's really doing a good job in the front row.”
The Cyclones’ senior trio of Keira Mullaney, Amy Berenbroick and Maeve Britt — have set the tone. Mullaney is pacing the team in kills (34) and aces (13) and her 27 digs are second on the squad.
“Mullaney is probably our most vocal leader, and she’s hard to stop when she’s on,” Mariano said. “She’s got a very good all-around package — she passes well, plays good defense, and she hits really well on the outside.”
Berenbroick, the team’s primary setter (64 assists), has impressed with her consistency and resilience and Britt continues to anchor the defense with a team-leading 46 digs.
Tess Rakeman is also a solid passer with 41 on the young campaign and fellow sophomore Josie Burke has also been a force on the back end with 22 digs.
The Cyclones will have had six days to prepare for their Friday meeting with Plainedge, which also sits 4-0 in Conference A1 and is the same 12-2 in sets this season.
“It's going to be first-ball kills and it's going to be minimizing errors,” Mariano said. “I think we'll do well against them, but I think it will be a battle. They’re a very good team.”
