Eastport-South Manor boys volleyball take Suffolk Div. II championship behind Ayden DesLauriers' big match
Ayden DesLauriers #7 of Eastport-South Manor, second from right, and teammates celebrate after their straight sets win over East Islip in the Suffolk County Division II boys volleyball championship at Longwood High School on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. Credit: James Escher
It’s Ayden DesLauriers’ time.
The Loyola Chicago commit was a freshman libero when Eastport-South Manor won a boys volleyball state title in 2021.
Now a senior outside hitter, DesLauriers is ready to lead the Sharks back to the state tournament.
DesLauriers had 30 kills, 17 digs and a block in top-seeded Eastport-South Manor’s 25-13, 25-13, 25-18 win over No. 3 East Islip in the Suffolk Division II final Tuesday at Longwood High School.
It’s the Sharks’ first county title since 2021 and comes after two straight losses in the county final, including a four-set loss to eventual state runner-up Westhampton last year.
“Last year, we won the first set 25-14, but we didn’t really stay on the gas and ended up losing the next three,” DesLauriers said. “Coming back this year, we were like, ‘There’s no way we can lose this game. We’ve got to do everything we can to get all these points and get hype for every point.’”
After a dominant first set, DesLauriers and the Sharks kept the pedal down in the second, which ended on a 7-0 service run by James Talamini.
East Islip battled in the third set, using a 3-0 run to tie the score at 13. But DesLauriers turned it up a notch, totaling 11 kills in the frame. Andrew Dragos helped the Sharks pull away with four kills and a block.
“We’re just a scrappy team,” Dragos said. “We don’t have crazy size, but we all hit the floor. (Coach Bill) Kropp has us doing tip drills every day, so nothing’s dropping on us.”
Dragos totaled 10 kills, Jack Cain had five kills, Talamini had three aces and Ralph Betner had 39 assists. Teague Nolan had 10 kills for East Islip (11-6).
Eastport-South Manor (16-0) will face the Nassau representative in the Long Island championship game/Southeast Regional Final at 4:30 p.m. on Nov. 15 at East Meadow High School.
“I’ve been to five county finals, one LIC and one state final,” DesLauriers said. “I was super bummed the last couple years that I couldn’t take this team there. I’m glad that we’ve had some other guys step up. We’ve been playing a lot better this year.”
