The Blue Devils had possession again after Hillside served into the net on the last play. Junior Brandon Genlot walked behind the back line and sent the ball over the net, into Hillside territory. The defender squandered the return, dropping it onto the floor and awarding Westfield the final point they needed to take home the game.
Westfield’s service was a high note in this UCT quarterfinal win. The Blue Devils accumulated 30 service points and 11 aces total, with senior Chris Gonzalez leading in both categories with 12 and 4, respectively. Gonzalez’s stellar service had closed out the first set for Westfield 25-15, and Genlot’s the second by the same score.
Another notable difference between this quarterfinal and previous games was the full return of sophomore Benjamin Bukiet-Beker. “It’s good to have Ben Bukiet-Beker back, he’s only played like five matches all year because of the bad back,” said head coach Ed Saggio. “He is a key component for us, he leads this game in kills.”
Bukiet-Beker came away from the game with 12 kills and 5 service points, contributing to the team massively. “Feels good,” Bukiet-Beker added, “I’ve been waiting to come back. I’ve been at every practice and game, and I couldn’t play so I’ve wanted to come back for counties, to continue this winning stretch… into counties and then to states.”
He was one of the main recipients of senior captain Sebastian Lorenzo’s sets, along with fellow senior captain Logan Shepherd, junior Veer Agarwal and sophomore Matthew Bonn all being assisted by Lorenzo. The setter racked up 23 of the team’s 24 assists. “I think today’s very representative of who we are as a team and our capabilities,” Lorenzo said.
With this win, Westfield improves their record to 12-9. Over the previous weekend, the Blue Devils had dropped four matches during a quad meet and only won one set total throughout those. This win against Hillside is a good reminder of the team’s potential going forward as they move further into the county tournament and then sectionals.
Advancing to the semifinals of the UCT, Westfield will next face Summit for the third time this season on Wednesday at 6:00 p.m. at home.
