Look to the past to reexamine the present. On Senior Night 2005, Melrose played North Andover at fan-unfriendly Roosevelt School. North Andover arrived about ninety minutes late; Melrose (20-0) showed up even later, losing the first set.
Melrose rallied to win the next three sets, but it was anything but a dominant performance and no cause for optimism.
Senior Night didn't predict playoff results.
Expecting good teams to dominate lesser opponents doesn't always work that way, especially in 'rivalry games'.
- Starting gate
- Finishing kick
- Learning how to win
- Leveraging strength
Melrose had uneven first set performance at home, including its victory over always-tough Burlington. Some related to inconsistent first frame serving last night.
A senior-laden roster showed its maturity overcoming multiple big deficits (5-11, 13-19) in the first set. That's less likely against playoff-caliber teams who have proven resilience.
Younger teams 'learn how to win'. That includes at least three key points:
- Emphasis on doing what you do well (feed the positive dog)
- Don't beat yourself. Giveaways like bad serves, free balls into the net or out of bounds are killers. "Get me over" returns are just that.
- Maintain aggressiveness. Melrose beat Billerica in last year's sectional final partly because Billerica got conservative playing not to lose. Winners play to win.
Performance expert Dr. Fergus Connolly explains, "never bring a gun to a gun fight." Bring overwhelming force. Coach Celli analyzes what has worked and what hasn't. That shows up in the distribution of sets (e.g. fewer back sets and setter dumps) and opportunities. There's an old basketball adage that the best players get the most shots.
Melrose notes. Melrose travels to Burlington Monday with the Red Devils looking to end Melrose's undefeated Middlesex League record.
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