Fredericks Leads Finley
Boys' Volleyball
The J. Taylor Finley Middle School boys' volleyball team coalesced into a very solid squad under head coach Chris Mooney and closed out the season with a record of 5-5. The Falcons were captained by Dan Mollitor, Tom Kopstein, Justin Martinolich and Jim Smoot.
Finley was led by eighth grader Vincent Fredericks. "Vinny is the most advanced middle [hitter] at eighth grader ever in Huntingotn," Mooney said. "I am excited to work with him in the future."
Mollitor, Kopstein, Smoot, Martinolich, Chris Neary and Matt Gelb rounded out the core of the team. "Dan is a great all-around athlete and a true captain," Mooney said about Mollitor. "His maturity is exemplary for his age level and it allowed him to be a great team leader."
Kopstein also showed flashes of brilliance. "He has the best all-around skills on the team," Mooney said. Six of the top seven players were eighth graders, with only Gelb an underclassman.
"This was a team filled with lots of athletes who play very hard," Mooney said. "If I had my eight best eighth graders moving up, I truly believe they would compete for a county championship in the next three to four years."
Complicating the future is that Finley boys' volleyball competes during the winter season, but boys' volleyball at Huntington High School is played during the fall. Several of the Finley players are already committed to fall season sports other than volleyball and a few others plan on attending a private or parochial high school.
The highlight of the season occurred near the end of the schedule. "We set a goal at the beginning of the year to reach a .500 record," Mooney said. "At 4-4, we faced Ronkonkoma in our final home meet and came out and lost the first two games. The team showed extreme heart by rallying together and winning the next three games easily, completing the goal of achieving a .500 mark."