Not Their First Rodeo - Focus on Seniors

It's not the first rodeo for Melrose Volleyball. Melrose travels to Watertown Tuesday at 7 P.M. for their ninth trip to the Final Four since 2003. Four times they advanced to the State Championship - 2005, 2011, 2012, and 2017.

Here is the summary: 

15 consecutive league titles 
9 Final Four appearances (including 2021)
4 state finals berths
1 state championship 

0 excuses

Winning is hard, which makes it valuable. And senior leadership is a pivotal component to excellence. Here's a quick look at teams that went to the title game.

The 2005 team featured three senior hitters (Jen Cohane, Karen and Paula Sen), a senior setter (Amanda Hallett) and senior depth with Merry Hayward, Liz Sheerin, and designated server Michelle Foley. Each of the twins held Melrose records for kills at one time. 

2011 was remarkable as a pair of All-State selectees, setter Brooke Bell and middle Sarah McGowan, were juniors. Seniors Jill Slabacheski and Alyssa DiRaffaele were key starters and senior contributors included Rachel Wolley, Brittany Adelman, and Maggie Moriarty. 

The 2012 State Championship team returned a boatload of senior talent - Bell and McGowan, Jen Cain, Rachel Johnson, Kayla Wyland, Amanda Commito, and Sydney Doherty. They also had future stars like Jill MacInnes and Allie Nolan. McGowan had 341 kills in 27 games and Bell and McGowan repeat as All-staters.

2017 had an abundance of youth but four solid senior captains - Lily Fitzgerald an all-everything setter, with versatile Saoirse Connolly, Jill Mercer, and Lydia Lombardo. They came up one set short of a title. 

All of which brings us to 2021 with senior stars Elena Soukos, Autumn Whelan, Abby Hudson, and Ava Burns. 

Coach Scott Celli made it clear that Melrose Volleyball version 2021.2 had the most talent since the 2012 championship team. And the girls validated that assessment by punching their ticket to the Final Four. 

Elena Soukos is a likely "triple crown" winner...All-State and Boston Globe and Boston Herald All-Scholastic. She has 312 kills and counting and averages 4.2 kills/set. But she is also a dynamic server and solid defender. If we construct a mythical All-Time top six at Melrose, she is definitely on it. 

Autumn Whelan is one of the top liberos in program history. She's been a defensive human highlight reel and her service run to launch Melrose into the Final Four goes into the annals of Melrose volleyball. 

Abby Hudson is a hard-hitting strong side hitter whose best comp is Laura Irwin. Abby's season was cut short by injury yet her closeout winner against Billerica will live on like Athena Ziavras' Sectional Championship winner in 2010. 

Ava Burns is a human dynamo of energy with solid blocking and serves southpaw knuckleballs with deadly accuracy. She emerged as an important force on the right side. 

You got this.