Eric Shilyuk (left) and Nick Hall (right) block the Needham hit yesterday in the Volleyball State Championship game at Babson College. (Photo by Liam Sheehan)
WELLESLEY – The Westfield High School boys’ volleyball team traveled nearly a hundred miles to get to the Division 1 state championship. Their entire playoff journey took them even farther than that.
Westfield’s drive and determination never waned. They did not stall – they simply ran out of fuel.
Southern champ Needham drove everyone off its road to a championship, completing an unbeaten season with a 3-0 sweep of Westfield in the state finals Thursday night at Babson College. The Rockets launched past the Bombers to capture the title, 25-21, 27-25, 25-17.
“It was really a back and forth first set – losing that one was tough,” Westfield coach Tyler Wingate said. “We gave it all we had in that second set.”
In the second set, Westfield (20-3) fell behind by five points early but rallied for seven straight points – behind the solid serves of John Bucko (6 kills) – to take a 14-12 lead. Manny Golob (7 digs) buried two of his 17 kills, and Bucko served up a pair of aces to spark the comeback.
Needam (26-0) recaptured the lead at 17-16, but kills from Isaiah Headley (5 kills, 18 digs) and Igor Belokopytov (6 kills) kept Westfield close. A sneaky backhanded tap over the net for a point from Eric Shilyuk (30 assists) caught the Rockets off guard.
Westfield tied the set at 23, 24, and 25 before Needham scored two straight points to take a 2-set lead.
The Westfield High School Bomb Squad cheers on the WHS boys’ volleyball team during the Division 1 state finals against Needham at Babson College on Thursday night. (Photo by Liam Sheehan)
The third set was up for the taking, tied at 7-all, 8-8, 9-9, and 10-10 before Needham went on a 6-0 run with junior Kyle Tobasky serving to pull away.
“This was still a successful senior group,” coach Wingate said, referring to a veteran group, led by seniors Shilyuk, Golob, Bucko, Headley, Mike Zampini, Ryan Fitzgibbons, and Nick Hall. “We won the first (WMass championship) trophy in school history. That says a lot about our players. They worked hard; they were dedicated.”
Westfield upended the 2014 WMass champion Chicopee Colts once during the regular season, and again in the west sectional finals. The Bombers eliminated the ’15 North champ Chelmsford in the state semis.
All that stood between Westfield and the most coveted piece of hardware in the state Thursday night was a team they scrimmaged to begin the season.
“Before the season began, we couldn’t even compete with them,” Golob said. “They had a 6-8 setter and a 6-7 outside hitter. This just shows how strong we have become since the first day of practice to the end of the season.”
Dmitriy Doroshenko and Ruslan Kontsimal also contributed for Westfield, finishing with 13 and eight digs, respectively.
