Volleyball squad has enormous height advantage over other teams
in the TCAL
If height is an advantage in volleyball, the Gilroy High boys’
volleyball should be a shoe-in to win a Central Coast Section title
this year.
Volleyball squad has enormous height advantage over other teams in the TCAL
If height is an advantage in volleyball, the Gilroy High boys’ volleyball should be a shoe-in to win a Central Coast Section title this year.
That sounds like a tall order, but with a lineup that includes a slew of seniors that are well over 6-feet tall and a sophomore up front who’s pushing the 6-feet, 10 inches, the Mustangs are dominating their opponents in all facets of the game – particularly in the hitting and blocking departments.
“It’s kind of funny,” said Gilroy High coach Craig Martin. “I’m 5-foot-10 and I’m looking up at all of them and so are all of the other coaches. We are easily the biggest team on the court every time we play.”
So far this season, the Mustangs have used their distinct advantage on the floor to pick up a number of big tournament wins in the nonleague portion of their schedule and then parlayed that success into an undefeated start in league play, which has them in first place in the Tri County Athletic League ahead of defending champion Monterey.
Gilroy High has not won a league title since 1998, but the 2006 Mustangs seem poised to change that statistic this year.
“This is the tightest team that I’ve ever coached,” Martin said. “The group of seniors that we have has known each other since they were in the third grade.”
In addition to their height, the experience that comes with having a slew of senior athletes has proved to be a huge asset in close games.
Every player on the Mustangs roster has played basketball at one time or another and most started for the varsity squad that won the TCAL title just a month ago, which could prove even more beneficial come playoff time.
Two of those basketball players are now the team’s dominant outside hitters for the volleyball squad. They are 6-foot-2-inch senior Vinny DeLorenzo and 6-foot-4-inch senior Ryan Chisolm.
Martin sets the rotation up so that when one player rotates to the back row, the other drops into the outside hitter slot.
“Both of their strengths is hitting,” said Martin. “Ryan serves good too and Vinny is leading the league in aces.”
Chisolm was named the MVP of the league for basketball and he’d been nearly as dominant on the volleyball court this season. He’s second on the team in kills behind DeLorenzo.
According to Martin, DeLorenzo’s game has grown by leaps and bounds after he opted to play on a club volleyball team out of Monterey during the off-season.
“He probably played in 30 matches during the off-season,” Martin said. “He never did that before. He can really play anywhere on the court. He can pass and set, too, but his strength is hitting on the left side.”
Martin went on to point out that while Chisolm and DeLorenzo are the big hitters this year, just about anyone on the court at anytime has the skills to put the ball away.
“That’s what’s so rare – to see a team that’s this balanced in hitting,” Martin said.
Another athlete with past basketball experience is Dominic Jackson. While his teammates smash down the big kills, Jackson, a 6-foot-4 senior, who didn’t play basketball this year in order to focus more on volleyball, is leading the team in blocks with 31.
“He’s also becoming a nice hitter this year, too,” Martin said.
Although he’s not a senior and never played the sport before, Jason Conrad’s stature generates instant concerns from opposing teams that have to deal with the 6-foot-9-inch sophomore’s mountainous presence in front of the net.
“His big thing is blocking right now and he’s learning to hit too,” Martin said. “We play him at opposite middle, which means that we rotate him into the front every time we can.”
About the only player on the Mustangs roster who is under 6-feet is 5-foot-9-inch Gene Losongco.
Like DeLorenzo, Losongco spent a large portion of the off season playing club volleyball, which has paid off tremendously in the early part of this season.
So far, the senior standout has racked up 229 assists. To put that in perspective, the person in second place in that category on his team has 17.
“Patrick Largo was our setter last year. He got the second most votes for league MVP last year so we knew it would be tough to replace him,” Martin said. “But Gene has done well and his game has improved dramatically this year.”
Although he didn’t play this past season, Travis Graham is another volleyballer with basketball experience and height to go with it.
At 6 –feet, 4 inches, he is a big presence in the opposite position and has 30 kills to his credit.
The fact that he is a left-handed player has also been a huge asset for his team.
“He gives us a different look, and the blockers have trouble finding him because he swings left-handed,” Martin said.
Despite their early successes on the court, Gilroy High has to keep the momentum going and win league or they won’t make the playoffs. Since the TCAL is considered a “B” league by the Central Coast Section, only the league champion advances to the playoffs.
“That’s our goal: to win league and go to the playoffs,” Martin said. “Right now our height is giving us a tremendous advantage, but that advantage changes a bit when we meet the more skilled teams. Monterey lost a lot of seniors last year, Live Oak only has seven players and no JV team, but San Benito High has a real good outside hitter. We’ll see what happens.”
