By:TONY BELLISSIMO
Once Lawrence rallied past upset-minded Hewlett in five games in a Nassau playoff semifinal last Tuesday, there was no denying the top-seeded Golden Tornadoes.
They were pushed to the limit by Plainview in an epic second game in last Thursday-s championship at C.W. Post that featured 72 points. But consecutive kills by senior outside hitter Mark Ribeiro gave Lawrence a 37-35 victory that highlighted a three-game sweep and the school-s first-ever title in 13 seasons.
We worked years for this it-s a great feeling, Lawrence Coach George Klein said after the 25-19, 37-35, 25-13 win over the second-seeded Hawks. That second game was unbelievable, and winning it took a lot of steam out of them. We came up with a lot of big plays.
Ribeiro, who will play at the next level at the University of Hawaii, had 21 kills and was named tournament MVP. Senior outside hitter Jon Leventhal, who was clutch time and again in the wild second game, in which the Golden Tornadoes overcame five game points, finished with 18 kills, and senior setter David Mayerson added 42 assists.
Everyone pegged us as the favorite from the beginning, because we brought everyone back after reaching the semis last year, Klein said. It put a little extra pressure on the kids, but they handled it well. Most of the pressure came from within, because they knew this year was their last chance at a county championship.
Lawrence (22-0) had 10 seniors, most of whom played together for three years.
Facing the best competition Nassau had to offer, the team experienced growing pains in 2002 before jelling last spring and reaching the semifinals before falling in five games to West Hempstead.
Past experiences definitely helped, Ribeiro said.
Seniors Chris Miller and Stan Lavrentyev helped Lawrence set the tone in the opener, and the team kept its cool after falling behind 11-3 in the second game. The Golden Tornadoes pulled ahead, 15-14, after senior David Rowsey and junior Ryan Walsh served for three points apiece and, later led 21-19 after one of Ribeiro-s patented kills. The Hawks fought back to tie it at 21, and it was untied or tied for the next 26 points.
I-ve coached a few games where the winning team needed 30, but once it got past 32 it was sort of like a blur, Klein said. They had us on the ropes a bunch of times. At one point I turned to my assistant coach [Walter Ditzel] and we both just shook our heads in disbelief.
Leventhal had five kills after the score was tied at 24, and two of them came with the Hawks on the verge of evening the match.
Jon was as good as anyone on the floor tonight, Klein said.
With the game tied at 35, Ribeiro-s first kill was more the blocking variety, but the game-clincher was a cross-court blast off a feed from Mayerson.
We had a real good feeling after closing out the second game, Ribeiro said. We just kept our focus.
Deflated Plainview showed signs of life early in the third game as it took a 4-2 lead, but the Golden Tornadoes quickly took control.
With seniors Reno Rovito and Evan Nemeroff leading the defense and the usual suspects firing on all cylinders on offense, it was 12-5 in the blink of an eye. The rest, as they say, is history.
There were some tense moments along the way, Klein said. Hewlett and Plainview deserve a lot of credit. What it came down to was sheer determination on our part. We took it up a notch when we had to.
