Midwood’s Shannon Appel gets a kill through the defense. (Damion Reid)
New York Post girls volleyball beat writer Marc Raimondi breaks down the PSAL Class A and Class B semifinals, starting at 5 p.m. on Friday at Hunter College.
Here’s the schedule:
CLASS A
5 p.m. – No. 1 Francis Lewis vs. No. 5 Midwood
6 p.m. – No. 2 Susan Wagner vs. No. 3 Cardozo
CLASS B
5 p.m. – No. 1 Goldstein vs. No. 13 FDR
6 p.m. – No. 3 John Adams vs. No. 15 Scholars Academy
CLASS A
No. 1 Francis Lewis Patriots
Head coach: Arnie Rosenbaum
Record: 12-0
How they got here: Beat No. 19 Edison, 2-0, in the second round and No. 8 MSIT, 2-0, in the quarterfinals
Player to watch: Alexandra Persaud
No. 5 Midwood Hornets
Head coach: Thomasina Lenzi
Record: 12-0
How they got here: Beat No. 12 Bronx Science, 2-0, in the second round and No. 4 Stuyvesant, 2-1, in the quarterfinals
Player to watch: Shannon Appel
Outlook: Francis Lewis struggled with Edison’s size in the second round and that’s one of Midwood’s strengths. Hornets middles Shannon Appel, Sam Edelstein and Jackie Handy will need to have big days against Lewis’ Alicja Pawelec, Chereese Sheen and Persaud. It might be the only tangible advantage Midwood has over its powerhouse opponent, the two-time defending PSAL city champion.
With that being said, the Patriots still beat Edison, 25-19, 25-12, though the Hornets are much better than the Inventors. Lewis just needs to play its game – there’s nothing more to it than that. The Patriots, on an average day, are head and shoulders better than everyone else in the PSAL. And a serving performance like they had Wednesday in the quarters – especially from Pawelec and Jillian Escobar – wouldn’t hurt either.
No. 2 Susan Wagner Falcons
Head coach: Marco Altieri
Record: 14-0
How they got here: Beat No. 15 Long Island City, 2-1, in the second round and No. 7 John F. Kennedy, 2-0, in the quarterfinals
Player to watch: Karolina Wisniewski
No. 3 Cardozo Judges
Head coach: Danny Scarola
Record: 10-2
How they got here: Beat No. 14 Townsend Harris, 2-1, in the second round and No. 6 Brooklyn Tech, 2-1, in the quarterfinals
Player to watch: Susan Kang
Outlook: This will be an all-out slugfest. If it doesn’t go a tight three sets, most people in the gym will be very surprised. These teams haven’t seen each other all year, which adds to the intrigue. It’ll be Wagner’s power going up against Cardozo’s guile.
If the Falcons’ passing is on, they’ll be a very hard team to beat. If Amanda Fiore gets the ball in the right spot, she’ll make a precise set just about every time. And with Karolina Wisniewski and 6-foot-3 Emily Burke on the outsides, that’s extremely dangerous. Libero Esther Jang was critical with her defense, passing and, especially, her serving Wednesday night. Wagner will need that kind of performance again.
When Wisniewski and Burke are pounding away, they might be doing so against the best libero they’ve seen all year: Kang. Not only is the pint-sized senior all over the court, diving from one end to the other, she has a world of experience. Aside from the players on Francis Lewis, she’s the only one left in the playoffs who has played regularly in a championship match. She did so as a sophomore.
It isn’t just her, either. Sophomore outside hitter Ashley Grubler took over the first set against Brooklyn Tech late and that proved to be huge. Senior outside Tina Tian had the match-winning kill and Helen Kim got the Judges there with a pretty ace. If Tian keeps swinging like she did Wednesday, Cardozo will be in good shape.
CLASS B
No. 1 Goldstein Dolphins
Head coach: Tzion Halali
Record: 14-0
How they got here: Beat No. 17 Springfield Gardens, 2-0, in the second round and No. 24 Bushwick, 2-0, in the quarterfinals
Player to watch: Kristen Herchenroder
No. 13 FDR Cougars
Head coach: Angela Robb
Record: 12-3
How they got here: Beat No. 20 Evander Childs, 2-0, in the first round; No 4 Leadership, 2-0, in the second round and No. 5 East Harlem, 2-0, in the quarterfinals
Player to watch: Devin DiPietro
Outlook: It’s a wonder FDR was only seeded No. 13. The Cougars won the ‘B’ title two years ago and were in the finals last year. This is a solid team that would compete in most ‘A’ divisions, led by DiPietro and Ka Kio Lei. There’s just one problem in the semifinals: Goldstein is the only team FDR has lost to all season and it happened three times in Brooklyn B6.
The Dolphins are the best ‘B’ team the PSAL has seen in the last few years. They would have earned a top-10 seed in the ‘A’ playoffs based on performances in tournaments – they finished first in their pool twice. Herchenroder is a club player, something not prevalent in the ‘B.’ Goldstein is expected to cruise, but can’t take FDR for granted. Beating a team four times in one season is a difficult task.
No. 3 John Adams Spartans
Head coach: Joe McMahon
Record: 14-0
How they got here: Beat No. 14 Manhattan Center, 2-0, in the second round and No. 6 George Washington, 2-0, in the quarterfinals
Player to watch: Emelie Paulino
No. 15 Scholars Academy Seawolves
Head coach: Kelli Hubbard
Record: 13-2
How they got here: Beat No. 18 Transit Tech, 2-0, in the first round; No. 2 Banneker, 2-0, in the second round and No. 10 John Bowne, 2-1, in the quarterfinals
Player to watch: Miranda Harding
Outlook: What more could a team in its first varsity season do? Well, Scholars Academy is thinking championship.
The Seawolves have already beaten the defending champion (Banneker) and their division nemesis which they lost twice to (Bowne). Now the girls from Rockaway need to take out their neighbors from down Cross Bay Boulevard. It’s been an incredible run already for a school that has only been open for four years and doesn’t even have seniors yet.
Adams will be tough to knock off. Paulino, a club player with Creole, and Ambar Abreu, a precocious sophomore, will be tough to contend with. The Spartans are the bridesmaids of the ‘B’ league. They always do well in league play, yet seem to falter in the playoffs. This is their chance at redemption.