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May 29, 2023

MVC Volleyball Preview: Haverhill, Andover lead chase to dethrone Lowell

Marco Gomez Cabo (2) goes up for a block in this file photo against Methuen. A

Marco Gomez Cabo (2) goes up for a block in this file photo against Methuen. A native of Spain, Gomez Cabo is a star for the Golden Warriors.

One year ago, the Haverhill boys volleyball team went on a nice run into the Division 1 Round of 16, before losing to Lowell, a team that made it all the way to the Final Four.

Dionis Llupo is now off to the University of Connecticut after a fantastic season as captain of the Hillies. Despite losing Llupo and others, coach Vincent Pettis knows his squad can make it back to where they were last season.

Senior captain Aaron Bennett, who just recently committed to Endicott for volleyball, returns to the Hillies after putting up 230 kills and 50 aces last season. Also returning are captains Casey Connors and Ryan Difloures. Connors had 38 blocks last season, while Difloures had 186 digs and 338 serves received.

Haverhill returns most of its guys, having plenty of experience playing the sport at a competitive level.

Lowell again should be tough to beat in the MVC. Along with the Hillies looking to make their case, here's a look at the rest of the area entries in the conference.

ANDOVER SEEKS NEXT STEP

In Haverhill's way will be Andover, a team that finished 13-6 last season before falling to the Hillies in the round of 32.

Legendary coach EJ Perry returns at the helm of the Warriors, and junior Marco Gomez-Cabo is hungry for more this season.

Gomez-Cabo, a first team MVC conference selection in his sophomore campaign, played on a club team during the winter and looks to play just how he did last season, leading Andover statistically in every category besides kills per contest, and digs.

RANGERS HOPE TO KEEP ROLLING

Last season, the Rangers of Methuen finished 8-12 and received their first true tournament bid since 2013. The team was inexperienced last season, and coach Matt Twomey knows this team can make some noise in the MVC.

Three of the four captains on the Rangers played basketball last season, as Drew Eason, James Levesque, and Josh Kiwanuka look to use their height as a major advantage.

Eason and Levesque will be a dangerous duo this season, after a fantastic first year in the 2022 campaign. Liam Doherty, the only non-basketball captain on the squad, returns to run the offense and take on a big leadership role.

Methuen will look to have its first winning season since 2016.

SHEA LEADS KNIGHTS

The Knights went 8-12 last season, and third-year coach Mike Scammon is excited to see Kyler Shea and company return.

Shea looks to be one of the top players in the MVC this season and led the Knights with 145 kills and 42 blocks last season. North Andover returns a big three in Shea, Gyan Mistry, and Eric Manning, with Mistry putting up 151 kills and 25 aces, and Manning having 91 digs last season.

Jake O’Neil is a first time player this year and looks to make an impact right away.

CENTRAL MOVING FORWARD

Coach Alana McNeil welcomes assistant coach Brian Adamopoulos, son of legendary Raiders football coach Chuck Adamopoulos, to the staff as the Raiders look to take a step forward.

Tyler Kirby, Connor MacDougall, and Michael Nguyen return as captains for Central, and the trio looks to have major improvements in the 2023 campaign.

Nguyen, a captain as only a junior, looks to build on his sophomore season, after leading the team with 349 assists. He also had 13 aces and a 85 percent service percentage.

Central should be competitive with the big names in the MVC, and looks to make some noise on a potential tournament run.

NEW ERA AT LAWRENCE

Reibin Hiraldo, a two-time all-MVC selection in his playing days with the Lancers, looks to bring his squad back to the top of the conference.

In 2013, Hiraldo led Lawrence as MVC champions, and the Lancers even went to the Final Four.

Lawrence has a big rebuild ahead of them, but Hiraldo is the perfect coach to take on that task.

Miguel Perez returns as a starter for the Lancers, and looks to lead his squad to the tournament.

Andover

Head Coach: EJ Perry

2022 Record: 13-8, Division 1 Round of 32

Returning Starters: Marco Gomez-Cabo, jr., Setter/Outside Hitter; Alexander Marshall, sr., Middle Hitter; David Gao, sr., Right Side; Enzo Masters, sr., Libero; Griffin Connell, jr., Outside Hitter

Returning Lettermen: Ian Armstrong, sr., Right Side; Andres Casillas, sr., Outside Hitter; Gyumin (Kevin) Lee, sr., Defensive Specialist; Vincent Xu, sr., Libero; Armaan Chowdhary, jr., Setter; Isaac William, jr., Outside Hitter; Teddy Addesa, soph., Middle Hitter; Sergey Bielecki, jr., Outside Hitter; James Bourgeois, jr., Outside Hitter; Dylan Becker, soph., Setter/Outside Hitter; Tristan Berty, soph., Outside Hitter; Timothy Conners, soph., Right Side; Aaron Han, soph., Defensive Specialist; Alexander Liu, soph., Defensive Specialist

Promising Newcomers: Charles Rainville, sr., Middle Hitter; Noah Chanthaboun, jr., Outside Hitter; Gavin Lohan, jr., Outside Hitter; Zachary Medjamia, frosh., Defensive Specialist; Aryan Patel, soph., Middle Hitter; Charles Romano, soph., Outside Hitter; Naoise Ruiz-Boylan, soph., Outside Hitter; Carter Yee, soph., Middle Hitter/Outside Hitter; Colby Ardizzone, frosh., Defensive Specialist; Sedrick Fabre, frosh., Defensive Specialist; Christian Kashila, frosh., Defensive Specialist; William Lau, frosh., Setter; Shaoquing (Peter) Luo, frosh., Setter; Marco Masters, frosh., Defensive Specialist; Eitan Sharon, frosh., Outside Hitter; Caleb Won, frosh., Outside Hitter; Jack Yanowitz, frosh., Defensive Specialist; Hank Schwartz, frosh., setter

Captains: Alexander Marshall

Central Catholic

Head Coach: Alana McNeil

2022 Record: 6-16

Returning Starters: Tyler Kirby, sr., Libero; Connor MacDougall, sr., Outside Hitter; Jaithian Medina, jr., Outside Hitter; Michael Nguyen, jr., Setter

Returning Lettermen: Colin Fague, sr.; Luke Reller, sr., Setter; Angel Viruet, sr., Middle Hitter; Aiden Herries, jr., Defensive Specialist

Promising Newcomers: Christopher Bethea, sr., Setter/Opposite; Franklin Trinidad, sr., Outside Hitter; Deryl Atem, jr., Middle Hitter; Evan Hebert, jr., Middle Hitter; Pablo Salas, jr., Outside Hitter

Captains: Tyler Kirby, Connor MacDougall, and Michael Nguyen

Haverhill

Head Coach: Vincent Pettis

2022 Record: 13-6, Division 1 Round of 16

Returning Starters: Aaron Bennett, sr., Outside Hitter; Casey Connors, sr., Opposite; Ryan Difloures, sr., Outside Hitter; Devon Buscema, sr., Setter; Cooper Dellea, jr., Middle Hitter; Mason Holmes, jr., Libero

Promising Newcomers: Gabe Batista, jr., Middle Hitter; Blake Garrison, jr., Defensive Specialist; David Martinez, soph., Libero; Brady Paris, frosh., Outside Hitter

Captains: Aaron Bennett, Casey Connors, Ryan Difloures

Lawrence

Head Coach: Reibin Hiraldo

2022 Record: 4-16

Returning Starters: Miguel Perez, sr., Libero

Returning Lettermen: Walky Felipe, sr., Middle Hitter; Hans Navichoque, sr., Setter; David Castillo, Jr., Opposite

Methuen

Head Coach: Matt Twomey

Returning Starters: Drew Eason, jr., Outside Hitter; Josh Kiwanuka, sr., Middle Hitter; Liam Doherty, sr., Setter; Matt Kovacev, jr., Libero/Defensive Specialist; James Levesque, jr., Outside Hitter

Returning Lettermen: Arthur Casarano, jr., Defensive Specialist; Shawn Laduke, soph., Libero/Defensive Specialist

Promising Newcomers: Lucas Giard, soph., Middle Hitter; Jariell Morales, jr., Middle Hitter; Jensen Morales, sr., Opposite; Jack Flynn, jr., Opposite/Outside Hitter; Jariell Morales, jr., Outside Hitter; Carl Cadet, jr., Setter; Ryan Potter, jr., Defensive Specialist; Andrew Cox, frosh., Opposite

North Andover

Head Coach: Mike Scammon

2022 Record: 8-12, Division 1 Round of 32

Returning Starters: Kyler Shea, sr., Middle Hitter; Eric Manning, sr., Libero; Gyan Mistry, jr., Outside Hitter; Ben Metsch, jr., Opposite; Robert Gilbert, jr., Middle Hitter

Returning Lettermen: Gabe Karkache, sr., Defensive Specialist; Tristan Ross, sr., Middle Hitter; Roberto Rivera-Munoz, jr., Defensive Specialist; Ernest Kim, soph., Defensive Specialist; Nate Wessel, soph., Opposite; Carson Wong, soph., Setter

Promising Newcomers: Yash Patel, sr., Setter, Simo Elbaqali, sr., Outside Hitter; Jake O’Neil, jr., Middle Hitter; Friedrich Loth, jr., Outside Hitter; Soham Makkena, soph., Setter

Captains: Kyler Shea, Gyan Mistry, Eric Manning, Ben Metsch

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