Knight boys are senior-laden squad
By: Bob Nuse
If the first two weeks of the season are any indication, this could be a special season for the West Windsor-Plainsboro North boys’ volleyball team.
"We beat Hunterdon Central and Bridgewater, who are two teams that we have never beaten before," said WW-P North coach Mike Smyrychynski, whose team improved to 3-0 with a 15-6, 16-14 win over Colts Neck on Wednesday. "Those are two teams that are usually among the best teams in the state. So for us to be able to beat both of them is great. I don’t think either of them expected to lose."
The Knights are coming off a season in which they finished 11-12 and lost in the opening round of the state tournament. But with a senior-laden lineup, Smyrychynski has high expectations for this team.
"I’ve been coaching this group of seniors since they were sophomores," Smyrychynski said. "This team has been together for three years. Their sophomore year was a learning year. Last year we were a team in the middle. We beat the teams we were supposed to beat and we lost to the teams we were supposed to lose to. We were .500 and then we lost in the state tournament.
"This year I was hoping that we would be able to beat some of those teams that maybe in the past we weren’t expected to beat. Both Bridgewater and Hunterdon Central were 2-0 wins for us."
Smyrychynski has an experienced team that has shown in the first three matches that it can play with some of the best teams in the state. His starting lineup is made up of all seniors, each of whom has experience.
The setter is Matt Stevens, who is in his third year running the offense. The outside hitters are Chris Berg, Dan Dickson and Ramine Riai, who Smyrychynski refers to as ‘The Terminator.’ Riai has 22 kills in the wins over Bridgewater and Hunterdon Central. At the middle hitter position, Smyrychynski rotates a trio that includes Vineet Maknoor, the team leader in blocks, as well as Matt Cheser and Ryan Watkins. He also likes to utilize defensive specialist Jon Pan.
"This is the payoff year for us," said Smyrychynski, whose team was originally scheduled to face WW-P South on Monday but the match has been pushed back to April 23. "This is the year that we can make a name for ourselves. People always forget about North. When the invitations go out to the tournaments people think of South but not North. When we beat Hunterdon Central, I think a lot of people thought it was a fluke.
"So the kids are eager to beat the teams that have been beating us and I encourage that kind of thinking. I’m also eager to see what the team can do against some of the other good teams we have coming up on the schedule."
The Knights are scheduled to travel to Edison today and have a match with J-P Stevens on Wednesday. Down the line there are also matches against traditional powers St. Joseph’s (Metuchen) and East Brunswick.
"Hunterdon Central and Bridgewater were huge wins for our school, but I had a feeling we could do it," Smyrychynski said. "Now I’m anxious to see what we can do against a St. Joe’s or an East Brunswick."
And, of course, there is always the rivalry game with WW-P South.
"We have yet to beat South," Smyrychynski said. "We’ve beaten them in scrimmages, but not in the regular season. This year, they beat us in the scrimmage so maybe we can beat them in the regular season. It’s a great rivalry between the teams. They have a good team and we know it will be a tough match."
This year North has already had its share of tough matches. And they’ve managed to win both of them. Now Smyrychynski hopes that can continue over the coming weeks.

