Warriors take CD to the limit in Districts

Jordan McMullen (23) and Adam Black (22) go high to earn a blocking point for the Warriors. (Photo by Mike Shull)

Razor thin.

That was the difference between the 9th-seeded Warwick boys volleyball team upsetting No. 1 Central Dauphin on Monday night or going home.

In fact, in the fifth and decisive game, Warwick found itself at match point a couple of times.

Leading 15-14, the Warriors nearly blocked a ball down on the Rams side of the net, only to see it trickle to the floor at their feet.

Ultimately, Central Dauphin pulled out a 21-19 game-five decision and escaped with a hard-fought 3-2 victory over the Warriors at Milton Hershey.

In the end, one play was all that separated the Warriors from going to States.

“I think that really hit home with the boys,” said Warrior coach Nate Gajecki, whose squad fell 25-17, 15-25, 25-23, 20-25, 19-21. “The boys played so well. We talked a lot about just trying to improve every week and it’s the best we played all season long and it’s just a shame that we couldn’t pull it out … The guys played phenomenal. It was a great atmosphere up there. What a quality team like Central Dauphin, a powerhouse in District Three and Warwick made a name for themselves.”

After taking game three 25-23, Warwick (10-6) had a 2-1 edge in games and got the early jump in game four. Eventually, the Rams (13-1) made a run and built a seemingly comfortable lead.

The Warriors, though, had other ideas.

Although they came up a little bit short in that game, dropping a 25-20 decision, the Warwick boys created a lot of momentum for themselves.

“We definitely closed the gap and got some progress and then that fifth game, wow, it was just point-for-point the whole way through and the left it out on the floor,” Gajecki said. “They played so hard, they played so well and 24 hours later, we’re thinking back, we’re starting to really question some of the calls that were made. And you hate to put it on a referee because they did a great job for five games. But the boys deserved to win last night and it’s just a shame that it didn’t work out.”

With neither side giving an inch in that fifth game, and with both teams getting their opportunities, the Warriors got within a point of winning at 15-14.

“We got a ball that was out of system, we knew where the ball was going, it was going to their outside and we put up a really big double block,” Gajecki recalled. “The ball bounces off of our hands, off the net and then kinda gets caught there and trickles over on our side. If it would have just fell on their side, we’re the winners, and it was like, ‘Ahh, so close.’ We had a couple of plays like that, they had a couple of plays as well where they had some swings for match point and our kids either dug it or the Central Dauphin kid hit the ball out of bounds.”

Senior Nate Miller, a Section One First-Team All-Star, was his usual dominant self with a match-high 22 kids. But he also rose to the occasion on defense, chipping in with 16 digs. Kyle Joseph paced the Warriors with 18 digs, Bryce Workman added 16 and Adam Black had 10.

“All year long, Nate’s done a wonderful job for us,” Gajecki said. “One of the things we’ve been really working with him on is his defense. Nate Miller is a great offensive threat for us. He did a great job all year long. But one thing he can take some pride in is how much he improved on his defense.”

In addition to his digs, Workman added five kills and one assist.

“Bryce Workman is an undersized outside hitter matching up against if not the best setter (Jacob Kerschner) in the District, State, if not the the nation, and had some incredible swings,” Gajecki said. “This kid’s a Division-One recruit (Lewis University) and Bryce just did a great job of changing up the pace of what he was hitting, where he was hitting the ball and he did a great job.”

Overall, the Warriors had three players in double-digits with kills, including Jordan McMullen and Austin Braas with 12 and 10, respectively. Braas also finished with two blocks, while Adam Black added 41 assists, one kill and one and a half blocks. McMullen also had one and half blocks.

“An unsung hero is someone like Adam Black,” Gajecki said. “He went toe-to-toe with this All-State setter and he matched set-for-set with this guy. And Adam Black’s giving up five inches in height compared to this kid. But he just really ran our offense to perfection. And we ran our middles. Coach Hall and were talking on the way home that this was the first time we’ve had two middles that we could rely on every game and they’re both first-year players (McMullen and Braas).”

Last Thursday in District opening-round play at Hempfield, the Warriors defeated Hershey 3-2 (18-25, 25-21, 25-23, 22-25, 15-11) to advance.

Miller finished with 29 kills, 17 digs and three aces to lead the way. McMullen and Braas added seven kills apiece, while Black finished with 45 assists and a match-high 19 digs.

Workman added 18 digs, while Joseph and Austin Miller had 12 and 11 digs, respectively.