They’re going to be buzzing about this one for years.
Midwood girls volleyball made program history on Nov. 22, clinching the team’s first-ever Public Schools Athletic League A title, defeating Cardozo in straight sets of 25–14 and 25–17.
It was a picture-perfect victory for a Hornets senior class that has come up just short of championship glory over the last three years.
“It’s the most amazing feeling,” said senior middle blocker Liridona Vata. “We’ve tried so hard and worked really hard, and the team has been playing at our best all season. This is just a really well-deserved victory for us.”
Midwood — the No. 2 seed in the postseason — came into the championship tilt riding a serious wave of momentum, and the Hornets (14–0) didn’t miss a beat in the final. The squad wrapped up the season without giving up a single set and trailed just a handful of times against the top-seeded Judges.
“We knew it was going to be a competitive game, and we knew that we had to come to that net as we did all season,” said Midwood coach Thomasina Lenzi. “We had to block well, which is what we do, and we had to have transitional game with great defense.”
Cardozo did its best to match the Hornets spike for spike, but Midwood managed to pull away down the stretch in both of its victories.
The Hornets wrapped up the first set on a 12-to-3–point run and notched six straight points in the second set to jump out to a 20–13 lead. Midwood took several timeouts early on in both sets, keeping the squad focused.
“I think those timeouts that coach took and talked to us and let us breathe, that helped us get our mentality back,” senior Fiona Ng He said. “We got our momentum back and would just go for it.”
The key play of the night, however, came midway through the second set as the two squads battled back and forth for nearly a minute — even playing the ball off the gym ceiling — before Cardozo hit it out of bounds. Midwood tied up the set at 11-all on the play and followed up with two straight points to take a lead it would never again surrender.
“We have two pretty good teams here who know the game well and are good at playing the game. So we knew it was going to be a battle, it’s never a walk-through here,” Lenzi said. “It’s just nice that we’re on the winning end this time.”
It all came full-circle for the Hornets seniors who made amends after falling to Cardozo in the city championship as freshman. This victory did a good job of erasing those memories — and leaving a legacy for the next group of Midwood standouts.
“This is kind of like our revenge,” Vata said. “This was just a great game in general for everybody, everyone worked their hardest and they did great. It’s just a joy and a relief.”
