Winning an opening match is nice. It’s even better when you can spread the wealth and get everybody some time on the court.
Athol High School head coach Donna Lajoie was able to do both on Thursday afternoon, working every player into the match as the Red Raiders defeated Leominster High School, Athol won 25-19, 25-12, 25-22, in independent boys’ volleyball action at Mallet Gymnasium in Athol.
While the veteran mentor was impressed with the progress of her new players, a quartet of veterans strutted their stull against the Blue Devils. Tyler Lajoie had a stellar opener, recording 11 kills, 20 assists, 3 aces, 4 service points and a block, Lorenzo Carra collected 14 assists, 4 points and an ace, Carter Amadon totaled 12 kills, 6 points and an ace, and Nelson Leadbetter chipped in with 10 digs and 40 serve receptions.
“My nucleus of Tyler, Carter, Lorenzo and Nelson did not disappoint; they were strong and really showed their experience,” said Coach Lajoie. “There was a play in the first set where Carter dove for a ball and put up a great dig. This may not seem significant to anyone else but it spoke volumes to me. As Carter has said for the past four years, (if) he doesn’t dive, it’s not in his wheel house. The fact that he did tells me he’s at a whole new level this year, he is so much more confident.
“Nelson was right on the money and all over the place, and Lorenzo and Tyler mixed up the sets and were smart about placement,” she added.
Hudson Carlson turned in the best performance of the first-year players. He finished with 7 kills, 1 dig and 5 points.
“The one that pleased me the most was Hudson. He was a force at the net,” offered the coach. “He’s a very quiet kids and I think he surprised some of the veterans. They don’t see what I see in him but they did today.”
Ryan Whelpley contributed 2 kills and 2 blocks, Zach Roberts had a pair of kills and Ryan Warner contributed a kill and a block for Athol. Avery Clyatt also fired home an ace.
“Without a doubt, the best part of (today) was that every kid on my bench saw some action,” said Coach Lajoie. “That is not going to happen often and it was desperately needed for so many of my newbies. I have eight kids today who have never played in a varsity match, some never even a single point of volleyball. They were very nervous so it was good to get them out there and see what they could do.”
Even though she was thrilled with being able to play everybody, Lajoie was playing close attention to see what went well and where work needs to be done.
“Some pleasantly surprised me and some showed me they’re not quite there but they are improving. I’m carrying 16 kids, which I have never done. With so many juniors and seniors making their debut, I have a deeper bench than I’ve ever had. … Overall it a good day but there is much to improve on as well.”
Athol (1-0) returns to action Monday at 5 p.m. against Putnam Vocational Technical Academy.