East Haven Volleyball Earns Spot in Class M Semis
The East Haven volleyball squad earned the No. 7 seed in the Class M State Tournament and made the most of its opportunity by clinching three victories to advance to the semifinals. The Yellowjackets posted a 3-1 home win over Ledyard in the first round, swept Northwestern 3-0 in a second-round home game, and then earned a 3-1 quarterfinal victory at No. 2 seed Torrington to reach the semis. The Easties now have a record of 20-5 on the season.
East Haven played No. 3 seed Seymour (18-2) in the Class M semifinals on Nov. 14 (after press time) at Law High School in Milford. With a victory, the Yellowjackets would face the winner of top-seeded St. Joseph and No. 4 Haddam-Killingworth in the Class M final at East Haven High School on Saturday, Nov. 18.
Head Coach Craig Brown made sure the Easties played a tough out-of-conference schedule on top of their already difficult SCC schedule to prepare for the State Tournament.
“It’s been everything. When you’re playing better teams, you’re better prepared when you’re in this spot,” Brown said. “We played H-K, and they’re in the other semifinal. We just beat Torrington, who was the runner-up last year. We’re better for playing those teams. That is all you can hope for.”
One of those teams on East Haven’s regular-season schedule was Seymour, which happens to be the defending Class M champion and the No. 3 seed in this year’s tourney. On Sept. 28, East Haven went on the road and beat Seymour 3-0, but now, the Wildcats are the squad that stands between the Yellowjackets and a trip to the final.
“Our girls are excited. They want to play in a final, but we know at the same time, we’re not playing the same Seymour team,” Coach Brown said. “This is the postseason. It’s one and done for everyone. We have to walk in with the same mindset and take care of business. We need to prepare ourselves accordingly.”
In the opening round of the tournament, East Haven topped No. 26 seed Ledyard 3-1 (25-15, 25-21, 24-26, 25-14) on Nov. 6. The Easties’ senior captains dominated on the outside as Kylie Schlottman had 15 kills, and Summer Onorato finished with 13. Onorato also added nine aces from the service line to go with her 10 digs. Libero Megan Roberts finished with a team-best 15 digs, setter Isabella Ragaini had 31 assists, and middle hitter Julia SanGiovanni totaled eight blocks.
Ledyard played with just one blocker instead of two, and so East Haven’s communication needed to be on point in order to find holes in the Colonels’ defense. Coach Brown and his players made the early adjustment and came away with the win.
“I think our practices have been getting better, and we’ve been talking more,” Schlottman said. “We help each other, which has helped out.”
Onorato said she can feel how her team’s energy has grown throughout the postseason, providing some great momentum for the Easties.
“We found our way to come together and work as a team. We know how to pick each other up,” she said. “We continue to push each other and work as a team. We have the same goal and want to bring it to the final.”
In the second round, East Haven made quick work out of No. 10 Northwestern with a 3-0 (25-12, 25-21, 25-23) sweep on Nov. 8. Schlottman led the way with 14 kills and six aces, and she and Ragaini both finished with 11 digs. Ragaini added 20 kills in the victory.
“We received a strong performance from both our middles,” Brown said. “[Northwestern] had two strong outside players. Without our middles to slow them down, we wouldn’t have an opportunity to hit. It was a very strong net day for us.”
For the quarterfinal round, East Haven hit the road to face No. 2 seed Torrington on Nov. 10 and earned a 3-1 (25-23, 25-20, 16-25, 25-20) win to advance to the semifinals. Schlottman finished with 19 kills, Diana Kalman had 11, and Onorato had nine in the win. Roberts had an outstanding defensive game as she recorded 24 digs. Ragaini added 14 digs, and Schlottman contributed 12. Ragaini had 35 assists to help the Easties move on by winning a tough road matchup.
“It’s always different going on the road after the success we had at home,” Coach Brown said. “You need one or two of those long road trips in your regular-season schedule, so the girls know what it’s like to get off a long bus ride and perform. We did that against Hale-Ray and Seymour this year, which helped.”
While Brown knows that East Haven has a chance to play for a state title on its home floor, the coach said Seymour is the only opponent on his mind right now.
“This is all you can do. You’re not going to play H-K or St. Joe’s if you don’t get it done against Seymour,” he said. “We need to practice what we can for [the semifinals] and then worry about that is happening on the other side.”
• East Haven volleyball Head Coach Craig Brown is assisted by Kristina Serio.
• The captains for the Yellowjackets are seniors Kylie Schlottman and Summer Onorato.
• The other members of this year’s squad include senior Julia SanGiovanni; juniors Cameron Cordaway, Diana Kalman, Alannah Doheny, and Megan Roberts; sophomores Isabella Ragaini, Samantha Schlottman, Eliza Goldberg, and Alexia Dottori; and freshmen Brooke Clancy, Kayla Goodrich, Carly Cordova, Victoria Heaphy, and Megan Gaudioso.