*A web site for Melrose fans, players, and families. Our goal is to make Johnny Most seem like an impartial observer...click the photos if you're not certain you have the whole frame.
Morgan Wootten of DeMatha High School has been one of the top high school basketball coaches for decades. His philosophy is simple:
Play hard
Play smart
Play together
Have fun
An old saying that I remember goes, "it's amazing what you can accomplish when nobody cares who gets the credit." And that sums up the way Melrose volleyball has functioned during the past decade...while getting better all the time.
You might want to watch from 7 minutes on to get the lay of the land (and the low ceiling) at Dunn Gymnasium. Most of the Melrose players have been here before...
Coaches Scott Celli and Steve Wall have been through a lot of wars at Andover High School.
Just a little over two months ago, this was the scene at the Middle School.
Melrose has been to the dragon's lair and slain them in our house.
Melrose has always played best in the big games.
Melrose does a lot of its best work at the net...the symbiotic relationship between Melrose basketball and volleyball remains a dominant theme.
Communication leads to execution.
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The players on the floor are only as good as the players whom they practice against every day make them.
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Youth and inexperience are not synonymous.
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If we analyze experiences over a lifetime, the memories usually come from 'non-linear' activity. This doesn't nullify analytical, rational, logical thinking. But it celebrates creativity and extraordinary experience, often charged by emotional inputs. Athletic achievement often falls into the latter. The Yankees having the best record over a decade looks at the resource input and the expected output. At least for me, the second smallest city in Massachusetts going to eight consecutive Division 2 North Championships represents the triumph of nonlinearity.
On television, the players always say "Hi, Mom", but don't forget that dads take as much pride in the players' achievements as moms.
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Some of the first ladies of Melrose volleyball.
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Athena Ziavras makes it happen.
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Jen Cain doesn't add big statistics...just helps the team win.
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Sarah McGowan has plenty of fans and the potential to be one of the top players in Melrose history.
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Donna Larsson has made great contributions to reporting Melrose sports.
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Expect a big crowd at Andover at 3 P.M. tomorrow.
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Rachel Johnson might not be as tall as All-State middle hitter Kirsten Morrison, but she compensates with timing and 'ups'.
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Jill Slabacheski with the "golden" touch.
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How could Don Norris 'know' that Kayla Wyland would "stand out"?
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The lollipops might help bring them out, but the volleyball brings them back.
Come and support the Lady Raiders at Andover High School's Dunn Gym tomorrow at 3 PM.
Don Norris works assiduously to photograph and edit Melrose volleyball pictures. Last evening, he sent some via Email, which didn't meet his high standards. Here are some better ones, with more to follow. Click the shots to get the whole frame.
The fans showed their colors last night in helping Melrose to its 20th win of the campaign.
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Volleyball is rapidly becoming the people's choice for sports in Melrose.
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Dig it! Athena goes low for the dig while Alyssa DiRaffaele (30) and Rachel Johnson look on.
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The long arm of the law, Kayla Wyland was the new sheriff in town at the net.
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Melrose got plenty of help from the student section.
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Athena crushes a kill, with basketball banners showing the Lady Raider winning tradition.
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New kids on the block. Sophomores Sarah McGowan (13) and Kayla Wyland etch their names in Melrose volleyball lore.
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The thrill of victory. Volleyballers celebrate match point and an eighth consecutive trip to the Division 2 North finals.
Melrose faced destiny in its rematch with its Division 2 North finals opponent from last season, and sent North Reading home empty-handed, with a powerful 25-21, 25-17, 25-19 victory at the Middle School Gymnasium.
With the victory Melrose achieved another 20 win season and advances to Andover's Dunn Gymnasium for the D2 North finals for the eighth consecutive season. Melrose accomplished this with one senior (tri-captain Athena Ziavras), two juniors (tricaptains Alyssa DiRaffaele and Jill Slabacheski), and five sophomores among its top eight rotation.
Melrose senior Athena Ziavras is all smiles after the D2 North semifinal victory.
Before the large crowd, Melrose started slowly as North Reading jumped out quickly to lead 7-2 behind All-State middle hitter Kirsten Morrison and senior tricaptain Bailey Eis. But Melrose found its footing, starting to build an offensive melody, a theme that would continue from there out. Brooke Bell found a hole off the pass to close it to 7-3, and Sarah Morrison tipped in a kill. North Reading extended the lead to 11-7, but Melrose put a 9-0 run on to remove all doubt. From there, the Hornets got within three at 19-16 and 22-20, but outstanding defense forced North Reading errors, and the hosts closed it out with a beautiful two handed push to the corner from Athena.
Unofficially, Melrose had eleven kills and one service error. Athena and Brooke had a trio of kills apiece, Rachel Johnson and Sarah a pair each.
The second set saw the emergence of the player of the match, sophomore Kayla Wyland, whose insertion into the rotation after the Reading game marked a turning point in the season. The Johnson-Ziavras-Wyland front dominated, and Wyland was the kryptonite for Morrison, as she and Rachel owned the action at the net. Melrose had a record (as best as we can recall) sixteen kills in the stanza, including six for Kayla, four for Athena, three for Sarah, and two for Rachel. Kayla simply dominated with instinctive, athletic play at the net.
Melrose went out 5-2 in game two, and after the Hornets closed within one, Melrose moved into overdrive, with a 19-7 rampage feature four Wyland kills. North Reading time outs and efforts from Morrison simply proved too little and Melrose closed the frame on a visitor service error.
Melrose Weekly reported Jen Gentile with sophomore opposite Kayla Wyland.
The final set saw North Reading determined to make a stand. Melrose jumped ahead 3-1, but the Green and Gold rebounded with a 6-1 run to go up 7-4. Melrose continued to battle and tied the game at 8, 9, 12, and 13, before Melrose broke ahead 15-13 with a pair of Ziavras kills. North Reading wouldn't go away, evening the game at 16 and 17, but Melrose benefited from Hornet miscues to go up 20-17. The Hornets got a point at 18, but the final 8-2 Melrose run completed the raid and the ginger ale was on ice.
Melrose added another 11 kills, including a crippling smash by Jill at 24, three more Kayla kills, two each from Brooke, Sarah, and Athena.
Game Analysis: Coaches Scott Celli and Steve Wall decided just after mid-season that a lineup realignment could create better blocking and stabilize the defense, and get another strong hitter into the mix in Sarah McGowan. He used a similar formula in 2003 en route to Melrose's first D2 North championship. What the coaches couldn't know was that the team would develop rapidly, the communication would improve and the offense would benefit as much as the defense. Jen Cain played flawlessly on defense.
Tonight the young Lady Raiders simply grew up against an experienced, tournament-tested opponent (19-2) with an All-State middle hitter. They overwhelmed an upper echelon team and played their toughest in the big moments, earning a trip to the 'ship. The Lady Raiders play for the D2 North title Saturday at Andover at 3 P.M.
Photos courtesy of Don Norris. Always click to see the whole frame.
Expect an overflow crowd tomorrow night in the long-awaited rematch between Melrose and North Reading. These teams have played some tough battles through the years in the North Shore League and old rivals meet again in the D2 North Semifinals.
Sarah McGowan provides both power offense and good blocking technique at the net.
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Coach Scott Celli has been the architect of nine consecutive playoff teams.
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Hands up!
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Rachel Wolley and Brittany Adelman remind us that volleyball brings people together.
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A crowd of over 500 attended the Melrose-Winchester quarterfinal match.
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Sydney Doherty (24) had three kills in set two, ably assisted by (left to right) Alyssa DiRaffaele, Athena Ziavras, Jen Cain, and Sarah McGowan.
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Sophomores Rachel Johnson and Brooke Bell on the block.
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Watertown AD Mike Lahiff shares a moment with Superintendent Casey.
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Sophomore Kayla Wyland gets some coaching instruction.
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Jill Slabacheski sees everything.
Like the sprawling dig below.
Freshman Rachel Ardizzoni got her first varsity appearance in the post-season.
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As they say in Vegas, Winner, winner, chicken dinner.
Melrose (19-2) hosts the North Reading Hornets (19-2) tomorrow at the Middle School Gymnasium. I think they'll need to roll out the auxiliary stands for that one. You won't want to miss a thing.
