Brick Township’s girls volleyball team can look to the future coming off its maiden varsity season with three key returnees from a team that went into the week of the cutoff still in contention for an NJSIAA tournament berth.
“We didn’t finish as strongly as we wanted,” said Paul Rebuck, who stepped in as interim head coach with Christine Conti out on pregnancy leave. “We fought the Toms River teams and Jackson (Memorial) but not as well as I thought we would. We didn’t make it to states, but there’s always next year.”
But with only two players graduating in solid middle hitter Caitlin Campbell and setter Samantha Ellis, the future looks promising, but who will be coaching the team next year?
“We don’t know but if offered the opportunity, I’d like to coach them again,” said Roebuck.
On the other side of town, Brick Memorial won only one match, but coach Melissa O’Reilly was encouraged by the performance of her team.
“We have three key players back and a freshman who turned out to be a good player,” said O’Reilly, referring to ninth-grader Sarah Beyers on a team that won one match in the keenly competitive Shore Conference A South. “Our record does not speak about the team’s ability. A lot of games were 25-23, 25-22 and even 27-25. We did play well but just couldn’t get over the hump.”
But there will be some big holes to fill with five seniors graduating, including setter Amanda Wagner and hitter Casandra Bailey, both of whom O’Reilly said, “improved a lot.” Also graduating is Carly de la Hoz, a back row player who missed a part of the season with injuries, “but always gave 100 percent” along with substitutes Lauren Smith and Kelly Belotti, out for volleyball for the first time but who worked her way into the starting lineup for nearly half the season. “She showed great athletic ability and grasped the game well and performed well in tough pressure situations,” said O’Reilly of Belotti. “She turned out to be dependable.”
But it was Brick Township that captured the excitement around midseason when it had a 4-7 record entering cutoff week before falling just short of making the postseason.
“A couple of matches could’ve gone either way,” said Roebuck. “We won one game against Toms River South and gave Toms River East a run for their money. There were a lot of good things for a firstyear program.”
Included in the victories was a sweep of two matches against Lacey and against Brick Memorial and a victory over Toms River North.
Roebuck said many returning players will be involved in the High Performance Volleyball Academy in Lakewood during the off-season if they are not playing other sports, and he encouraged them to attend camps so they come into next season prepared.
Roebuck will rely again next season on the strong play of middle hitter Nicole Binetti and outside hitter Carissa Pagnotta. He’ll also look to setter Courtney Jones, outside hitter Emma Erbig, who also is an outstanding softball player, and libero Tina Scuttaro, who he said “showed a lot of heart.” All are juniors.
Sophomore Courtney Mazza also worked her way into the lineup at times and another sophomore, Corinne Gorski,
“is an up and coming player,” said Roebuck. “They were a pleasure to coach, a good group of girls for whomever coaches them,” said Roebuck, who has coached previously as a varsity assistant at Brick Memorial. “Coach Conti did a great job with these girls as they already knew the sport when I came in. It’s a work in progress, a learning experience for them and for me as a head varsity coach.
I picked up a lot of knowledge.”
O’Reilly also has some players to build on for next year, particularly sophomore Lauren Rushalski, who participated in camps and private instruction while playing on the club level. “She has a lot of experience,” said O’Reilly. “She’s more advanced and understands the game a lot more.”
Also returning are juniors Ashley Nungesser, an outside hitter, and Breanne Mancusco, who can play in different spots on the floor well, and sophomore Samantha Ruzzano, who also is a versatile player.
“I’m really proud of the team,” said O’Reilly. “Although we didn’t win a lot of matches, the girls were winners in the way they really improved. It made the year very enjoyable.”
O’Reilly said she also is looking to freshman Rachel Ruzzano, who is Samantha’s sister, and Mydalis Ruiz, a newcomer to the sport, who showed a strong willingness to learn and to help the team in any way she could, said O’Reilly, who said she hopes the district eventually adds junior varsity and freshman teams to cultivate talent and interest in the varsity in the future.