After losing nearly the entire roster from last year’s state sectional title team, Lyndhurst girls volleyball coach Steve Vahalla knew this season was going to be one marked with several teachable moments.
In a fall full of learning and developing, this past week proved to be especially beneficial for a young Golden Bears team that starts five sophomores as they got their first taste of tournament play.
This past Thursday, Lyndhurst, seeded 19th, dropped a 3-0 decision to 14th-seeded Paramus Catholic in the first round of the Bergen County Tournament. The loss dropped Lyndhurst into the Bergen County Invitational, where on Saturday, the Bears out-lasted Leonia in five sets to advance to the quarterfinals.
For the season, Lyndhurst is now 14-6 and has won 10 of its last 12 matches, heading into the final stretch of the regular season.
“As a young team, it’s important to be a part of these matches so we know how to handle them down the stretch,” said Vahalla, referring to both the caliber of teams in Bergen County and the best of five format that has also been adopted for the state tournament. “I am very proud of this team and how resilient they are. They love the sport and are willing to learn. They want to know how to get better and what they can do to improve. We have grown a lot over the past month and I’m extremely honored to coach them.”
Leading the Lyndhurst attack has been outside hitter Jaylin Vuono Reid. The sophomore ranks among the county’s best in kills (153) and digs (186) this season. Saturday’s matchup with Leonia was her most impressive performance to date, finishing with 22 kills, 24 digs and eight aces.
“Jaylin continues to get better as the weeks go on and it showed on Saturday,” Valhalla said. “In the final set vs. Leonia, she put down three straight kills to gain the momentum back and take us to victory. She is becoming the go to hitter if we need a kill or point and her potential is endless.”
Complementing Vuono Reid at the other outside hitter spot is fellow sophomore Olivia DeRuvo, who recently shifted outside from middle hitter. DeRuvo has 84 kills and 78 digs on the season.
DeRuvo and junior middle hitter Gabriela Kalisiak (79 kills, 73 digs) have given Lyndhurst a potent three-pronged attack in recent matches.
“Both Olivia and Gabby are two athletes who can change a match,” said Vahalla. “They hit the ball well, can find open spots and block well too.
“These three have the power to control a game and it’s been fun to watch when all three are on the court.”
At the other middle hitter spot is sophomore Sofia Campos, who just recently entered the starting lineup. Junior Christina Mizeski (37 kills, 111 digs), is the starter at opposite hitter.
Orchestrating the offense has been another underclassmen in sophomore Madison Herman, who has 373 assists in her first year on varsity.
Sophomore Raeleen Ortiz has had a strong season at libero with 157 digs and Debra Ogunbowale, the lone senior on the roster, has 59 digs as the team’s defensive specialist.
Fellow sophomores Sarah Martins and Arianna Del Villar bring additional depth to the roster.
Lyndhurst is set to host Holy Angels in the Bergen County Invitational semifinals on Saturday. But first, the Bears have a pair of big NJIC Colonial Division matchups when they travel to Leonia on Tuesday for the third meeting of the season between the two. On Thursday, Lyndhurst goes to Bogota to face a Bucs team ranked No. 17 in the state by NJ.com.
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Jason Bernstein | Observer Sports Writer
Jason Bernstein joined The Observer as its sports writer in March 2022, following the retirement of Jim Hague. He has a wealth of sports-writing experience, including for NJ Advance Media (nj.com, The Jersey Journal, The Star-Ledger.)