Do you remember the first time you heard that school was going to be canceled because of COVID-19? At first, you were excited; school from the comfort of your own home sounds like a sweet deal. But as time passed you realized just how terrible that actually was. Classes were remote, graduations and dances were canceled, and gyms were closed. One thing I missed most was the feeling of going to a school sporting event. I didn’t even care who was playing, just the feeling of being there and experiencing the game in person was awesome.
Not only is the volleyball team good, but they are also entertaining as heck. Currently, as of Sept. 30, they are 6–7 away and 4–3 at home. While this only makes them about .500, they play with so much energy and heart and it is inspiring to watch. The Beacons were going into Wednesday’s game after a tough loss against Plymouth State where they were swept 3–0. If you watched the game Wednesday against the University of Southern Maine, however, you would have never realized they lost their previous game like that. They came into the game with a lot of energy. They were dancing and cheering before the game, and during the game their energy paid off after sending USM in just three sets. The first two sets were won fairly easily. The first set ended 20–25 while the second set ended 25–13. In both of these sets, the Beacons led for the entire set. The third set, however, is where USM started to fight back. This set went back and forth until the last couple of points of the set where the Beacons went on a four point run to put USM away.
I hesitate to call this an “easy game” because of how much effort was bleeding out of the Beacons. They were diving onto the floor, communicating well and running for saves. Ally Dean, 8, and Carsen Komminsk, 9, in particular lead the team with their effort and leadership. After every play, both positive and negative, Carsen and Ally would both be there to celebrate the good play or uplift their teammates after they made a mistake. When USM started to rally back into the game it was these two that kept their teammates motivated and focused, not just with their great plays but with their amazing leadership.
The volleyball team is currently on a road trip where they face some pretty decent teams like Roger Williams College, Springfield College and UMass Dartmouth. Despite this, I do believe that they can come back to a plus record in these games. These are all winnable games especially if the Beacons play as they did against the University of Southern Maine.
I would highly recommend seeing a volleyball game for yourself. I promise you won’t regret it. The next home game is going to be on Saturday, Oct. 16 at 2 p.m., and if you can’t make that one, they also have a game that follows on Tuesday, Oct. 19 at 7 p.m.
It is important that we come together as a community to support our Beacon Sports teams. And not only volleyball, but all sports. We should be supporting our fellow Beacons to create camaraderie on campus. UMass Boston is a fairly big school. Imagine how cool it would be to pack those stands and cheer for your school.