The Kearny boys volleyball entered the season off of most people’s radar. There was no preseason ranking, no star players, just a chip on their respective shoulders.
“They don’t really talk about that too much,” said Kearny head coach Ashley Latushko. “It’s more so when they see a ranked team (in a tournament) like Southern or St. John Vianney and then it lights a fire under all of them. They almost don’t think about themselves being ranked, but they think about the team they’re competing against and it lights a fuel with them and it makes them play 10 times harder because they know that they can be the same team.”
Through the first month of the season, the Kardinals have certainly made a compelling case for a position in those rankings. At 8-2, Kearny is tied for first with St. Peter’s Prep in a highly-competitive HCIAL American Division. The Kardinals also recently took second place in weekend tournaments at Hackensack and Belleville where they went to face some of those top teams in the state.
While Kearny remains unranked, it does have a team that is both versatile and deep this spring.
Leading the way has been senior, three-sport standout Caleb Baptista. The 6-foot-3 Baptista, a starter in the middle last year, has shifted over to outside hitter this spring and has responded with a team-best 86 kills to go with 48 digs, nine blocks and eight aces.
“This year, our best chance to win was by putting him outside and he stepped up,” Latushko said. “He’s really taken on the outside role. It came as second nature to him.”
Senior Wesley Furbino is at the other outside hitter spot and has 40 kills with 47 digs. Misael Tiburco gives Kearny a third option on the outside, posting 13 kills, 20 digs and six blocks, most of that coming when an injury required Baptista to move back inside for a couple matches.
A big reason Baptista was able to move outside has been the presence of 6-foot-3 senior Mark Saravia in the middle. Saravia, a starter in the middle last year, has enjoyed a breakout season with 59 kills, 22 blocks and 20 digs to go with eight aces.
“Mark I never have doubts about,” said Latushko. “He just progresses when it comes to hitting and his defense has improved.”
At the other middle is 5-foot-11 junior David Duffo, who has 24 kills, 19 blocks and 16 digs.
The opposite hitter spot has been shared between juniors Arthur Souza (27 kills, nine blocks) and Johnathan Martins (14 kills, eight digs), who recently returned from injury. Souza, originally a defensive specialist, also has 44 digs.
Adding to that versatility is senior setter Isael Quintero, who not only has 186 assists, but has accumulated nine kills, six blocks, 71 digs and is the team’s top server.
“He knows exactly what I’m looking for on the court,” Latushko said. He’s worked on his block and becomes a threat there. When he’s in the back row, he’s able to read and create.
“There’s always been a spread of attacks across the board and he’s just really good at creating that balance.”
Junior Oliver Krzynowek serves as Kearny’s backup setter.
Javier Rodriguez, a junior, is the libero and while the Kardinals do not have a fulltime defensive specialist, Souza, senior Anuj Ghetwal and junior Rafael Pereira are all capable of filling the spot, as well as senior Edgar Siguenza.
Junior Ammar Khaifa and senior Bernardo Pereira bring additional depth at hitter.
Kearny looked to keep its spot on top of the HCIAL American Division standings when it was set to face reigning county finalist Hudson Catholic on Monday. Then, on April 28 at 6 p.m. it travels across town to square off with arch rival and three-time defending Hudson County champion Harrison. Road division matches at Union City on Wednesday and Friday at Bayonne.
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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.)