Win or lose, Marco Altieri knew at least one thing would be accomplished Friday night. His Susan Wagner girls volleyball team was in its second straight PSAL Class A semifinals after having never been there before. And no longer would the Falcons be a second-class citizen on Staten Island or anywhere in New York City.
“I think we’re now a program,” he said. “I think everyone would consider us a legit program.”
That fact took a little of the sting out of No. 2 Susan Wagner’s 25-21, 25-22 loss to No. 3 Cardozo, but not quite all of it. The Falcons held leads of 20-14 and 22-16 in the second set before breaking down. They had hopes of a berth in the finals after taking a set from powerhouse Francis Lewis in the semis last season.
“We had a goal and we didn’t achieve it,” Altieri said.
The coach shook things up a little bit in his rotation and it worked for a stretch. Altieri moved star 6-foot-3 junior outside hitter Emily Burke to middle, where she played last year, in part to combat Cardozo star sophomore outside Ashley Grubler.
“I thought we could run some [middle attacks], get some blocks, negate some swings,” Altieri said.
Burke, continuing her torrid postseason, had back-to-back kills to put Wagner up 22-16. But the Falcons had a net violation on the next point and the Judges, playing loose with a one-set cushion, took momentum.
“We just didn’t get it done – period,” Altieri said. “I think the better team won. [Cardozo coach] Danny [Scarola] has a great team.”
Wagner’s group of seniors helped the Falcons to unprecedented success, including their first two Staten Island A9 titles. Setter Amanda Fiore, outside hitter Karolina Wisniewski, right side Devon Kelly, middle Olivia Ingram and defensive specialist Christine Vega were the catalyst for what Altieri hopes becomes a PSAL powerhouse.
“I’m proud of what we achieved,” the coach said. … “It wasn’t like we underachieved at all. I just hoped that our last game would be Tuesday.”