RallyNorth.net

DERRY, N.H. — There’s a new face in the race for the Division 1 volleyball title.

Undefeated top seed Salem earned its customary berth, but its opponent this year will be Timberlane. Continuing its best season ever, the second seeded Owls took a determined 25-19, 25-22, 25-21 triumph over No. 3 Pinkerton Academy in Tuesday’s opening match.

DERRY, N.H. — There’s a new face in the race for the Division 1 volleyball title.

Undefeated top seed Salem earned its customary berth, but its opponent this year will be Timberlane. Continuing its best season ever, the second seeded Owls took a determined 25-19, 25-22, 25-21 triumph over No. 3 Pinkerton Academy in Tuesday’s opening match.

Top ranked and undefeated Salem boys volleyball team advanced to the next round as they defeated eight seeded Souhegan 3-0. Salem has now won 91 consecutive games. The Blue Devils got strong play from Kyle Ruffen who led the team with 11 kills and with Chris Barnes dishing out 19 assists.

The Pinkerton boys volleyball team defeated Londonderry 25-15, 25-20, 25-19 to advance to the semifinals. Spencer Taylor (15 service points, nine kills) and Steve Curry (nine kills, three aces) had big games for the Astros, as did Frank Wallack, who finished with 12 assists.

Just as it did in the first week of the season, the Timberlane boys volleyball team defeated Oyster River in straight sets, this time beating them 26-24, 25-15, 25-13 to advance to the semifinal game. Alex Mill led the way with 18 kills, 15 service points and five aces, Conor Dube tallied 35 assists, and Terry Matatall added 10 blocks.

Owl milestones

Timberlane's boys volleyball team ended its regular season on a high note, sweeping Coe-Brown 25-8, 25-10, 25-11 to improve to 12-4, which is the best record in its five-year history and puts it in a tie for second in Division 1 heading into the playoffs this week. Also, Senior Alex Mill had 18 kills, 15 service points and a team-record 10 aces.

No. 90 in a row

The Salem boys volleyball team ended its fifth straight regular season undefeated, while winning its 90th straight match, with a sweep of Londonderry.

No. 90 in a row Another regular season ended in perfection for the Salem boys volleyball team which swept Londonderry 25-11, 25-14, 25-16 to improve to 16-0 with its 90th straight victory. "With this group, starting five juniors, I think this is a great accomplishment," said Salem coach E.J. Perry. "A lot of people thought we were going to be too inexperienced this year, but we have a talented junior class that is going to get better." Jason Kinney led the Blue Devils with 15 kills and Chukwuemeka Okeke had nine blocks. Salem now has 10 days off before gearing for its fifth straight state title.

Alex Anderson recorded 12 kills, and was at his best in the final, deciding set as Timberlane squeeked past Masenic 25-8, 19-25, 25-27, 25-9, 18-16. Conor Dube notched a team-high 40 assists and Tommy Paoletta stood out on defense for the winners.

With Londonderry trailing in the final set, Matt Adams recorded six straight service points, then hammered home the match point as the Lancers downed Oyster River 25-15, 15-25, 25-22, 25-22. They also rallied back from a 2-9 deficit in the third game.

The Salem boys volleyball team won their 88th game in a row with yesterday's 25-20, 25-14, 25-9 straight sets victory over Souhegan. Meme Okeke led the way with 14 kills, while Chris Barnes added 29 assists and Sean Stewart had 12 service points and three aces.

Tommy Paoletta played great defense for the Timberlane boys volleyball team.

Led by the Forrest brothers Corey and Jesse, the Salem vollyball team won their 86th consecutive match over Oyster River to improve to 12-0 on the season. Jesse Forrest, a senior, led the team with seven blocks, while his sophomore brother Corey added 10 kills as Salem inched one game closer to securing a number one seed for the state tourney.

Mascenic may be improved over previous years but Pinkerton had an answer for everything thrown at it in a 25-23, 25-21, 25-15 victory. Steve Curry's blocking skills and 18 service points were crucial as was Danny Goodwin's strong net play for the Astros, now 7-2.

The Salem boys volleyball team extended its winning streak to 84 games and, in the process, upped its season record to 10-0 after a 25-14, 25-8, 27-25 win over Pinkerton, on the Astros homecoming day.