Wednesday,
October 30, 2013
By Rich Barton
NJS.com Staff Writer
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Maria Bellinger (18) and Tori Ondo celebrate a big point in the third game of Paramus upset of Old Tappan in the Bergen County Tournament quarterfinals on Tuesday. |
OLD TAPPAN – For the past two years, Paramus has had the potential to be not only a good volleyball team, but a great one. Problem was, every time the Spartans got into a big match over that span, Northern Valley/Old Tappan has been on the other side of the net. In the past two Bergen County Tournament quarterfinals and in last year’s North 1, Group 3 section final, Paramus has been taken out by the Golden Knights. On Tuesday night and for the third straight year, the two teams met in the Bergen County quarterfinals and it appeared like the final outcome would be a familiar one as Old Tappan took a four-point lead in the third and deciding game.
This time, however, Paramus was in no mood to watch Old Tappan celebrate at its expense for a third straight year.
Maria Bellinger was outstanding throughout and Gina Kisley came up with two huge blocks down the stretch, including one on the final point of the match, as fifth-seeded Paramus pulled off a 25-18, 21-25, 25-22 upset over fourth-seeded Northern Valley/Old Tappan to advance to the Bergen County semifinals.
The teams battled back and forth in the first game before Bellinger got on a hot streak and dominated the rest of the game. Down 11-8, Paramus tied the game at 11 on consecutive kills by Kisley before Bellinger started swinging away with efficiency. She had eight kills on nine swings, including four consecutive kills to put the Spartans ahead. The 5-foot-11 sophomore added three straight kills off of sets from senior setter Erika DiPasquale to close out the first game.
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Hayley Miller had 8 kills and 2 blocks for Old Tappan, which fell to 17-3. |
“Old Tappan is always a tough match and we wanted to make a statement,” said DiPasquale. “We’ve had some tough losses to them the last couple of years. We haven’t beaten them since 2005, so every time we play them it’s a big deal to us. Getting off to a good start in the first game was huge for our confidence.”
Playing on their home court, the Golden Knights responded in the second game by dominating the net early and neutralizing Bellinger in the process. Hayley Miller had a kill and a block on the first two points and then Natalie Alechko joined the in on the fun. She had four kills and an ace to cap a 9-4 spurt to put Old Tappan ahead, 11-5, on its way to evening the match.
The third game had all the intensity of one being played in a state final with neither team willing to give an inch and the lead changing hands six times early on. Miller had two straight kills to snap a 10-all tie and force a Paramus timeout, but the stoppage didn't help as the Spartans returned to the courth consecutive attack errors to give Old Tappan a four-point lead. It was a crisis moment for Paramus, which could have wilted under the pressure of possibly losing to a team that has simply had its number for a long time.
“We had to dig deep because we really wanted this match,” said Maria Bellinger. “We lost to them in the counties and states last year and in the regular season this year. When we played them in the regular season, we felt like we gave the match away. Old Tappan wasn’t going to beat themselves and we couldn’t either. We got in our minds that if they were going to win, they would have to take it from us.”
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Senior setter Erika DiPasquale had a season high 32 assists for Paramus. |
The Spartans caught a break when three attack errors by Old Tappan over the next four points opened the door. The teams went back and forth with neither gaining an edge as the game was tied at 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, before Paramus pulled in front, 19-18, on a kill by Sky DiGirolamo.
Old Tappan tied the game one last time at 22 on consecutive aces by Alechko. The Spartans refused to fold this time around though. When Kisley’s block went over the heads of the Golden Knights and inside the service line for the final point, there was both a sense of feeling of pure elation and relief as the Spartans beat Old Tappan for the first time in almost a decade. On the Old Tappan side, the emotions were torn between being part of a great match and knowing that a great opportunity had passed them by.
“It was a great battle between two teams,” said Northern Valley/Old Tappan head coach Melissa Landeck. “Both teams traded momentum at different times. All teams have rotations that are stronger than others and that’s just the ebb and flow of a great volleyball match. I’m proud of our effort and we left it all out on the floor. They just got the one last run on us.”
Bellinger had 14 of her match-high 23 kills in the first game to go with 13 digs for Paramus (23-2). DiPasquale had a season-high 32 assists and all-state libero Jessica Chakonis had her customary steady performance leading all players with 17 digs. Kisley added eight kills and four blocks.
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Sophomore Natale Alechko had 8 kills for Old Tappan. |
Senior Kristen Rinaldi recorded 23 assists for Old Tappan (17-3). Miller had eight kills and two blocks, Alecko added eight kills and four aces, and Olivia Budnich led the team in digs with 13.
Paramus moves onto the Bergen County semifinals on Friday night where it will face top-seeded Immaculate Heart Academy and All-American middle blocker Nia Reed. With another chance to prove themselves against the best New Jersey has to offer, the Spartans look forward to the chance of making an even bigger splash.
“Old Tappan has been our mental hurdle for the past two years and we finally have cleared it,” said Paramus head coach MariaElena Bellinger. “You can’t beat a team like Old Tappan by playing timid and playing not to lose. We had to go down swinging and making things happen. Old Tappan is a very well disciplined team and they’re a great program, but so are we. I’ve always known that we were capable of this. This was a night for our players to prove it to themselves that we’re capable of achieving great things this season.”
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