Bayport-Blue Point wins LI Class B girls volleyball title

Isabella Imbo’s match-clinching block wasn’t your run-of-the-mill rejection.

It was sent to the hardwood with authority, perhaps in a release of the frustration that accumulated during what became a difficult match for the Bayport-Blue Point girls volleyball team.

The Phantoms recovered from a sloppy third set to defeat Wheatley, 25-10, 25-15, 19-25, 25-16, Sunday afternoon at Farmingdale State in the Long Island Class B championship match. They advance to the state semifinals next weekend at the Cool Insuring Arena in Glens Falls.

“I am proud of them because they had to battle all their nerves and they still found a way to execute,” coach Toni Mulgrave said. “They just continued to stay together as a team.”

A strong serving team, Bayport-Blue Point (10-2) recorded 16 aces. None were bigger than the consecutive aces from Haley Prisinzano, who gave the Phantoms a 16-14 lead in the final set from which they wouldn’t look back.

Prisinzano had six aces and 14 assists.

“My team is a really, really good serving team,” Mulgrave said. “They know how to hit their spots in a great way, and when they’re on, they can roll points at any time. At any time, we can go on a spurt like that. And we needed it.”

Serving is what kept Wheatley (15-2) alive in the match, as Jamie Ryan put on a clinic from the service line. With an aggressive jump-serve, she notched six aces, including three straight for an 11-3 lead in the third set.

Mulgrave helped Bayport adjust its defense, which led to a better outcome in the fourth set.

“I think we got a little too confident,” Imbo said.

“I think we just lost focus,” said Shannon Carey, a senior who had five kills, two blocks and two aces. “Having that break between the third and fourth sets, we realized we just had to pick up our heads.”

Carey was a member of the 2016 team that participated in the state semifinals, and she said this team has what it takes to win it all. Imbo, who had 10 assists, seven kills and three blocks, agreed.

The stage of a large arena might have contributed to 2016’s disappointing showing in Glens Falls. Mulgrave expects a more mature outcome.

“They went up there with all the awe and now, we’re not happy to just be there,” she said. “Our saying is, ‘We didn’t come this far just to come this far.’ We’re going up there to make a statement.”