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Girls’ varsity volleyball defeated North Quincy 3-2 in a hard-fought State Quarterfinal game on Nov. 10, advancing to the Division II Final Four.
The Final Four match will take place on Nov. 15 at Framingham High School with the No. 2 ranked Titans facing No. 3 Canton, who defeated Notre Dame 3-0 to advance to the Semifinals.
At the game on Friday, many fans and classmates cheered the girls on as the team came back from being down 1-2 and then winning the last two sets in a row, winning the final set 15-13. Head Coach Janice Henningson was amazed by the large, wild crowd at Friday’s home game.
“It was an awesome atmosphere, and I think the girls really felt it,” Henningson said.
As the team, which ended the regular and CMASS season 17-4, prepared for the match against Canton, Henningson reflected on their progress this season. According to Henningson, team chemistry is what makes the group special, and it contributed to the team making it this far.
“It’s been a long season and the girls [have been] doing this since late August,” Henningson said. “It’s been a fun year. The girls are having a lot of fun and working hard.”
Senior captain Sophie Hjerpe also credits the team’s friendly dynamic being the reason why the team has been successful this year.
“A lot of us have known each other since elementary school so we’ve grown up together, so that definitely helps the dynamic,” Hjerpe said.
While the team has been playing well with a strong offensive attack, Hjerpe believes there are still things to improve on including defense and receiving opponents’ serves.
“I think [we need to improve on] just getting through those rough patches to move forward in the game,” Hjerpe said.
With two games between the Titans and a potential State Championship title, Henningson is focusing on building on their previous successes and staying consistent.
“We’re trying to stay focused on what we already do because it got us this far to where we are now,” Henningson said. “We don’t have to do anything special for the other team. We’ll make small adjustments as we need.”
Because the team graduated only two seniors last year, this season was able to build off of and further develop last year’s successes with a strong starting lineup, according to Hjerpe.
“I think senior [captain] Caroline Macaulay and junior Grace Chiota are very good outside hitters,” Hjerpe said. “Senior Cam Arcona is a great setter and really everyone just works well together.”
If the team wins in the Semifinals, they will face either Westborough or Longmeadow in the Division II State Final.
Contributing reporters: Riya Mahanta
Editor’s Note: This article contains sources who are members of The Harbinger’s Editorial Board. Such members have been removed from this article’s editorial process in order to maintain fair and bias-free reporting.
