No. 3 seed Simsbusry defeated No. 2 seed Conard in West Hartford on Thursday. 

Muna Nwafor goes high for the potential put-away against Conard. Conard vs. Simsbury boys volleyball CCC semifinal. May 25, 2023. Photo credit Paul Palmer

By Paul Palmer

In a thrilling three-set match, Simsbury eliminated Conard in the semifinals of the CCC boys volleyball tournament 25-20, 25-23, 25-17. The Trojans had been beaten 3-0 by Conard in a matchup during the regular season.

The two sides kept it close throughout most of the first game. Sophomore Tristan McClay won back serve for the Red Wolves on back-to-back points at 7-6 and 8-7. Rafael Ortiz took the Red Wolves to 11-9 with his service later in the set. McClay also had a big block on Simsbury’s Cyrus Nash’s attempt at a kill at 16-14.

Jayden Flores (2) of Conard makes the pass with teammates Aaron Ngo (5) and Tristan McClay looking on. Conard vs. Simsbury boys volleyball CCC semifinal. May 25, 2023. Photo credit Paul Palmer

The net play of  Nash, Muna Nwafor, and Adyn Cohen helped tip the balance in Simsbury’s favor at key moments throughout the three sets. Cohen had a kill and a block on consecutive points to tie the set at 17, another block to make it a 19-17 lead, and 20-17 on his serve. Adam Vincent ended the set with kill.

Nash took Simsbury from a 3-all time to a 7-3 lead on his serve before Conard called a timeout in the opening minutes of the second set. Conard fought back to tie things at 11 on a point from Dominic Belyaev and took it to a 12-11 lead before Simsbury got the side out. The two sides went back-and-forth with no one able to build a lead of more than two points.

Julian Hartland makes the save for Conard in the Red Wolves’ CCC semfinal loss to Simsbury. Conard vs. Simsbury boys volleyball CCC semifinal. May 25, 2023. Photo credit Paul Palmer

Conard then pushed it to 21-17 behind the service of Ortiz. Simsbury ran off four points, the last an ace by Nwafor to make it 24-23. With Conard serving at the same score, Cohen had the put away from the visitors as they won set number two,  25-23.

Simsbury opened the third set by serving to a 3-0 lead, before Conard responded with three points of their own to tie it. It was Julian Hartland’s pass to McClay for a 6-6 tie that lit a spark on the Conard side.

The Trojans worked the game to a 13-9 lead, before Conard narrowed it to a one-point game. Conard could not hold their serve on four of their next five attempts, and Nash ended it with a big, left-handed spike that landed just inside the baseline to put away the set and the match for Simsbury.

Conard’s Jayden Du and Rafael Ortiz try to block the shot of Simsbury’s Cyrus Nash. Conard vs. Simsbury boys volleyball CCC semifinal. May 25, 2023. Photo credit Paul Palmer

The closeness of the scores reflected the all-out efforts from both teams. At one point in the third set McClay dove into the bleachers to keep the ball alive for Conard. Liberio Jayden Flores was also a top contributor for the Red Wolves, handling most of the serves from Simsbury and also digging out several low balls before they hit the floor.

Conard’s 13-3 regular season record was fourth-best in Class L and the Red Wolves will most likely host their first-round game of the opening round of the CIAC Tournament which begins on Wednesday.

Dominic Belyaec (14) and Julian Hartland (11) move into position after the serve from Simsbury. Conard vs. Simsbury boys volleyball CCC semifinal. May 25, 2023. Photo credit Paul Palmer

Paul Gagalick readies to play the serve from Simsbury. Conard vs. Simsbury boys volleyball CCC semifinal. May 25, 2023. Photo credit Paul Palmer

Julian Hartland makes the save for Conard in the Red Wolves’ CCC semfinal loss to Simsbury. Conard vs. Simsbury boys volleyball CCC semifinal. May 25, 2023. Photo credit Paul Palmer

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