Despite being among the state leaders in kills with 455, Bogota senior Samantha Gioiosa has always been one to put her team first.
“Playing with my team all the time and coming to practice definitely made this whole entire year really special,” Gioiosa said. “I knew it was going to be my last year with them. Team bonding really just made my year the best.”
Gioiosa finished the 2016 season with a career-high in kills (455) and digs (232). For her career with the Buccaneers, the senior had 1,111 kills, 550 digs, 410 service points and 91 service aces.
It’s a career that will go down as one of the best in the illustrious history of Bogota volleyball. In the biggest matches, the senior played her best.
In the play-in game in the Tournament of Champions on Nov. 19, fresh off Bogota’s third Group 1 state title in four years, Gioiosa had a season-high 27 kills and 20 digs.
On the season, the Bergen County standout had 20 or more kills in seven matches. After that three-set loss to Hunterdon Central, an emotional Gioiosa expressed what this team has meant to her for four years.
“I won three state championships and been in the finals four times,” she said. “It has just been a really good career. Obviously I’m just really upset that I’m not going to play on my team anymore.”
The feeling didn’t quite sink in yet a few weeks later.
“It’s definitely crazy that I have three state rings now,” Gioiosa said. “It’s still upsetting because my sophomore year when we lost, we were so close to winning. I’m happy having three state rings. Not that many people can say that.”
The 2016 season in particular dealt with adversity for the senior outside hitter. She overcame an injury early on. A hard-fought quarterfinals loss to River Dell, the eventual champion, in the Bergen County Tournament could have been a setback for the Group 1 power.
“Over the summer, I hurt my foot at practice,” the Bogota senior said. “I went to the doctor and they didn’t know when I’d be able to come back. I was on crutches for a while. It turned out that it was only two or three weeks, and I missed only two or three games. After that, I was limited to how much I could play.
“For a few tournaments, I could only play back row – I wasn’t allowed to jump. I played libero for that time. I couldn’t play front row where I normally do.”
Gioiosa and Bogota regrouped, however, and accomplished the main goal coming into the season, which was to win a state title.
“We went into the gym every day and gave it our all,” Gioiosa said. “I got back on track with myself and we finished strong.”
Gioiosa has come a long way since her freshman year, where surprisingly she was most interested in soccer.
“Volleyball definitely wasn’t something I was born into,” she said. “I played a lot of sports when I was little. I was really, really big into soccer. Bogota didn’t have a soccer program until I was a freshman or sophomore in high school, so it was already too late to switch over.”
From third to sixth grade, the Bogota star said she’d go to a summer volleyball clinic Bogota hosted every year. That’s where she started to be interested in the sport. Throughout middle school, she made the team. At the time, however, she was still interested in other sports such as soccer and basketball.
“In high school, I realized I loved volleyball,” Gioiosa said. “Since there was no soccer team, I was going to focus on volleyball. I pursued it from there.”
The senior said she hasn’t looked into the next step of her career yet, and where she may play in college. Gioiosa has received an offer from Binghamton University.
Still, Gioiosa wants to pursue her options after continuing her trek playing club volleyball.
“I’m playing club so we’ll see where that takes us,” she said.
Gioiosa’s goal is to play Division I. Due to her height, she will have to play as a libero, according to Bogota coach Brad DiRupo.
DiRupo said he expects Gioiosa to excel wherever she ends up next.
“Sam is an elite volleyball player and she’ll do great at the next level,” he said. “Offensively and defensively, that’s what makes her different. She is able to excel on both sides. That’s what makes her a special player.”
Contact Amit Batra at abatra@njschoolsports.com. Follow him on Twitter @AmitBatraHS
