Enlarge Alyssa Ki/The Jersey JournalSecaucus players smile for the camera after the second match. Secaucus won the Hudson County Girl’s Volleyball Championship (2-0) on Oct. 26, 2012 at NJCU.

 

In what could be its most dominant performance to date, the Secaucus girls volleyball team defeated Hudson Catholic for its fourth consecutive Hudson County title.
“It’s a feeling you can’t really describe,” said Secaucus senior Danielle Roesing. “It’s just an amazing feeling.”
With a 25-8, 25-15 victory over the Hawks (21-3) last night at the John J. Moore Athletics and Fitness Center at New Jersey City University, the Patriots (20-2) claimed their fourth consecutive title in dominant fashion.
“When (the girls) play the way they know how to play, it’s a satisfying feeling,” said Secaucus head coach Sheila Rivera.
Secaucus was led by strong performances from Kimberly Alfonso (9 service points, 2 assists) and Julia McClure (12 kills, 2 assists, 1 block).
While Secaucus was more than impressive, Hudson Catholic still made the Patriots earn their title.
In the first set, Hudson Catholic jumped out to an early 5-2 lead, but Secaucus roared back with a 23-6 run to close out the set.
“It’s the best feeling in the world,” said Alfonso, a senior who closed out the first set with five straight service points for the Patriots. “When you’re serving, it’s awesome to get on a roll. You feed off of your teammates and they feed off you.” The Hawks again got off to a quick start in the second set, taking a 2-0 lead. Despite a 8-1 run that put the Patriots up 17-7, the Hawks remained resilient, but lost the set 25-15.
“Secaucus has a great reputation and the girls were excited to play them,” said Hudson Catholic head coach Fernando Colon. “I’m very proud of my girls and I’m happy that the seniors could play for the county title.”
In just its fourth year, the Hudson Catholic program has come a long way. This season, the Hawks earned a portion of the HCIAL White Division crown. “They have a lot of heart. They deserve to be here,” Colon said. With their fourth consecutive county title in the books, the Patriots have just one goal in mind.
“States,” said Roesing. “We won the league, now we need to focus on states. We just have to take it one game at a time.”
While her girls are focused on the state tournament, Rivera, who won several county titles when she was a player for Secaucus in the 1980s, knows there is always room for improvement.
“Every game, we need to see an improvement,” Rivera said. “(The girls) work hard, but they’re not there yet.”
Secaucus is expected to play Monday against Leonia before the opening game of the state playoffs on Tuesday.
“Once you get to states, we like to say its ‘dig or die,'” Rivera said.
Secaucus (20-2): Danielle Roesing 11 digs, 4 assists; Kendall Caruso 7 digs, 8 assists; Katelyn Schlemm 9 kills; Julia McClure 12 kills, 2 assists, 1 block; Kelly Riebesell 3 kills; Andie Lennon 7 digs; Kimmy Alfonso 9 service points, 2 assists; Kristina Ulrich 3 digs; Alyson Torman 2 digs, 1 kill.
Hudson Catholic (21-3): Jade Gomez 4 service points, 3 aces, 1 block, 1 kill, 2 digs, 9 assists; Cynthia Soto 2 service points, 2 digs; Sydney Stanton 6 kills, 4 digs; Laura Alvarado 1 dig; Chitipa Vichkolwrapan 10 digs; Monica Cordova 2 kills, 2 digs; Gabriella Macias 1 assist.