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HARRISON – It was midway through Wednesday’s state North 2 boys volleyball semifinal between top-seeded Harrison and old nemesis Livingston, when Harrison head coach Nick Landy rolled his eyes and looked to the sky.
No, Landy wasn’t at all upset. He was just astounded at what his star middle hitter Piotr Namiotko just did.“I was in the middle of saying ‘Oh, my God,’ and ‘Did that really happen?’ ” Landy said of Namiotko’s dominating performance, leading the Blue Tide to a 25-16, 25-12 victory over Livingston to advance to the sectional finals for the second straight year.
“It was between shaking my head to grinning and I never smile,” Landy said. “But I grinned a couple of times.”
Harrison (35-4), the No. 1-ranked team in The Record Top 5, took care of business in 50 minutes, thanks to the play of Namiotko, who is among the best all-around players in New Jersey, if not the best.
Namiotko collected 16 kills, two service aces, six digs and seven blocks in a performance that saw him play all over the floor. His ball strikes were thunderous and appeared as if they were fired from a cannon. His dinks around the net were done with the precision of a surgeon. Namiotko used this sleek maneuver where he sneaked behind his teammate on the front line, then leaped toward the net to unleash another thunderous smash.
FILE PHOTO BY DANIELLE PARHIZKARAN/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER: Harrison’s Piotr Namiotko collected 16 kills, two service aces, six digs and seven blocks in a performance that saw him play all over the floor in Wednesday’s win over Livingston.
