Harrison boys volleyball coach Anthony Sabia admitted that this preseason was one of the more difficult ones for the Blue Tide as they looked to replace a big graduating class that featured two All-State caliber players while also working with a lineup that is not typical of the way Harrison normally likes to play.
But for as different as the weeks and months leading up to the season were, the first week of games produced some very familiar results for a program that has won three straight Hudson County titles and made three consecutive trips to the NJSIAA North Jersey, Group 1 finals.
The Blue Tide opened 2026 with sweeps over North Arlington, Secaucus and Becton, to close the first week at 3-0 and in the familiar position of on top of the NJIC standings.
“Our preseason was a lot different than it usually has been. We had to work through a lot of growing pains, both skill wise and maturity wise,” Sabia said. “I do have a young team this year, so we had to figure out a lot of things that we worked through during the preseason.
“But now that the matches have started counting, we’ve been playing composed volleyball. I don’t think we’re at our best yet, but I feel a bit more confident and comfortable in what we’re capable of doing.”
Not many teams run their offense through their opposite hitter, but the Blue Tide have done just that early on with senior Jonathan Petrillo. A starter and key offensive cog a year ago, the 6-foot-4 Petrillo is off to a fast start to the season, recording 31 kills, including nine or more in each of Harrison’s first three games. Petrillo also has five blocks and 16 digs.
“Being able to get him the ball is really important to us,” Sabia said. That was one of the biggest struggles in our preseason. It was tough in the preseason, but I think we’re hitting our stride at the right time now. We’re starting to make those connections and he’s doing a really good job for us.”
Petrillo’s presence has taken some pressure off of starting outside hitters Ryan Manini and Pedro Quezada. Manini, a junior returning starter, has 11 kills and 20 digs while Quezada, a senior, has been a surprise early on with 19 kills and 15 digs.
“I knew that (Pedro) was capable. It was whether or not he was going to be able to produce when Push came to shove in these actual matches,” said Sabia. “I’m glad he’s been doing it consistently so far in this season. He’s been putting up numbers.
Starting at middle hitter are a pair of sophomores in Carlo Herrera and Renato Morales.
Also in the mix as a middle hitter is one of Harrison’s setters, senior Gabriel Da Costa. At 6-foot-2, Da Costa is by far the tallest setter the Blue Tide and has provided the team extra size up front.
DaCosta shares the setter spot with junior Anas Oufrid, who is better known for his work as the Blue Tide’s starting goalkeeper in the fall. Oufrid currently leads Harrison in assists with 35.
Jose Jacome, a junior, serves as the team’s libero.
Among those set to see bigger roles on the floor as the season progresses are freshman outside hitter Kelvin Marinez, sophomore opposite Pedro Silva de Freitas, junior outside hitter Ricardo Renteria, senior middle hitter Julius Amaefuna and junior defensive specialist King Henry.
Harrison looks to continue its early success going on Tuesday against Weehawken before embarking on one of its more challenging portions of the schedule. On Wednesday, the Blue Tide will host Fair Lawn and Hunterdon Central in a tri, welcome Bayonne into town on Thursday before traveling to Lyndhurst on Friday.
“I’ve been saying it the whole preseason to the team that this is a process. We’re looking to just get better every day,” said Sabia. “We don’t need to be the best team in New Jersey in March, We want to be the best team in New Jersey in June. We want to be the best team in Hudson County at the end of May.”
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Kevin A. Canessa Jr. is the editor of and broadcaster at The Observer, an organization he has served since 2006. He is responsible for the editorial content of the newspaper and website, the production of the e-Newspaper, writing several stories per week (including the weekly editorial), conducting live broadcasts on social media channels such as YouTube, Facebook, and X, including a weekly recap of the news — and much more behind the scenes. Between 2006 and 2008, he introduced the newspaper to its first-ever blog — which included podcasts, audio and video. Originally from Jersey City, Kevin lived in Kearny until 2004, lived in Port St. Lucie. Florida, for four years until February 2016 and in March of that year, he moved back to Kearny to return to The Observer full time. Click Here to send Kevin an email.
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.)