RHAM a win away from Class M three-peat
Tessa Smolinski will wake up Friday morning at 5:15 for the last time in her high school volleyball career.
And the RHAM senior is actually very unhappy about it.
“I love volleyball so much that I’d get up at any time to play,” Smolinski said.
Smolinski’s and the Sachems’ dedication may not be the only reason they have separated themselves from much of the state, but it certainly goes a long way in explaining their success.
Unbeaten and top-ranked RHAM moved to within one win of a third straight Class M tournament title with a 25-23, 25-19, 25-22 sweep of No. 4 Jonathan Law Wednesday at Middletown High.
The Sachems (24-0) will take on No. 11 Joel Barlow (18-4) Saturday at 1 p.m. at Berlin High. It will be a rematch of the 2007 final, won by RHAM in a three-game sweep.
“This means everything,” RHAM senior Kelsey Welling said. “We’ve practiced so hard and played so hard for this and now we have a chance to get what we want.”
The Sachems advanced but not without a challenge from Jonathan Law (18-3).
In Game 1, RHAM took a 24-23 lead on Allie Carlson’s kill and put it away on a mix-up by the Lawmen on the ensuing serve.
In Game 2, the Sachems used an 8-2 run to break a 14-14 tie and took the win on a dink shot by Smolinski.
Even though RHAM has lost just one game in 24 matches (72-1), Jonathan Law still refused to go away. It took a 20-16 lead in Game 3 as the Sachems took time out.
But they had learned a lesson from the one game they lost — to Southington in the final of the Central Connecticut Conference tournament on Nov. 7 — and showed they had learned it well.
“After Southington took a game from us we knew we had to pull together and get it done,” Smolinski said. “We’ve been there and we know we can do it.”
A 6-1 run put RHAM in front by a point. A kill by Caitlyn Stapleton tied it at 22 for Jonathan Law, but senior Mallory Grosso then came up with the decisive play of the match.
Grosso’s dig on a spike by Casey Dulin kept a point alive. Dulin would later misfire on another spike and the Sachems were ahead for good.
“Mallory is used to getting to balls like that,” Welling said. “She can read the ball and just has that mentality to make the play.”
A Welling kill brought RHAM to match point and Welling’s block on Stapleton ended it.
“I got a little nervous at the end when Stapleton started hitting the ball straight down to the ground,” RHAM coach Tim Guernsey said. “But (after Grosso’s play) you could look across and see their faces. The Law girls didn’t seem like they had any fight left. Once we got that ball back I knew they were in trouble.
“Our girls love playing together. There’s great camaraderie on the floor. They never give up and they chase down a lot of balls. They’re relentless.”
Senior Ellie Linden had 25 assists for the Sachems. Classmate Chelsea Fenton had 10 digs and six kills. Smolinski (10 digs, seven kills, four aces), Grosso (six digs, five aces), and Welling (13 kills, four blocks) were also standouts.
With their high expectations does come some pressure. But the Sachems have been there and done that and handle it well.
“I think the pressure is just us wanting to be the best we can be,” Smolinski said.
RHAM’s winning streak now stands at 52.
All the Sachems are looking for is one more.
By Carl Adamec
Journal Inquirer
Published: Thursday, November 19, 2009 12:51 PM EST