By RICHIE HALL
There are many advantages to a sports team having an experienced roster.
One of them is the ability to adjust to changes. With 10 seniors, the Fishers boys volleyball team had the necessary experience and leadership to make adjustments on the fly. As a result, the Tigers flew to another state championship.
Fishers defended its state title with a four-set win over Roncalli, which took place May 22 at Southport High School. The Tigers took care of the Royals 25-23, 25-13, 18-25, 25-20.
“It was definitely, absolutely a lot of fun,” said Tigers coach Carlos Capo.
Fishers won the state title in 2019; last year’s season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We also played them in the championship match in 2019,” said Capo. “It was our only loss of the season, so we were able to avenge that one loss.”
The Tigers played Roncalli in the regular-season on April 27, with the Royals edging out Fishers in five sets, 17-15 in the fifth. (The fifth set is played to 15 points, while other sets are played to 25 points, and a team must win by two points.) The Tigers were 41-1 for the season. That included a 37-1 record against Indiana teams. Fishers played and won four matches against teams from neighboring states, getting victories over Cincinnati Elder, Oelentangy Orange from the Cleveland area, and two Louisville schools, St. Xavier and Trinity Lutheran. In addition, Fishers won the Indiana Crossroads Conference championship and the Indy Metro tournament championships, in both cases defending their titles from 2019.
The tournament began with the regional round on May 15. The Tigers swept through their regional, beating Lawrence North in the semi-finals and Brebeuf Jesuit in the championship, both in straight sets.
The regional victory sent Fishers into the state quarter-finals, which took place on May 21. The Tigers beat Hamilton Southeastern in straight sets, then defeated Cathedral in a four-set semi-final before their championship victory over Roncalli.
The experience factor came into play once the state tournament began, in a couple of ways. Capo said that four of his 10 seniors were part of Fishers’ varsity team in 2019, while the others were playing junior varsity.
“There were a handful of them that were part of the championship team two years ago,” said Capo.
Capo said that experience allowed him to move players around.
“Towards the end of the season, I moved my center to outside hitting, because I needed a little more firepower,” said Capo. “I moved my libero to setting. That was working really well.”
Two days before the quarter-finals, one of the Tigers players was injured, meaning there would have to be another adjustment. Capo had to re-do the lineup with only one practice left before the state tournament. But Fishers worked through it just fine.
“Because of their experience and leadership, they were able to adjust to last-minute changes and execute as if we were playing that rotation all year long,” said Capo.
Senior Aaron Hernandez won the Mel Young MVP award for the tournament, hitting 15.6 kills per match with a hitting percentage of .448. Hernandez, who has committed to play at Ball State University, used to be the Tigers’ setter, although he did do some hitting during the season.
“He was on fire,” said Capo. “He was hitting the ball from the left side, the right side, the back row.” Capo said Hernandez was “nearly unstoppable” and his play “made a big difference and a big impact in the tournament.”
Senior Franky Capo moved into the setter position, playing a position that Carlos Capo said he hadn’t played since the eighth grade. Franky Capo averaged 29.2 assists per match in the tournament, making the All-Tournament Team, and totaled 633 assists, placing third in Indiana.
“He did a great job running the offense,” said Capo. “He’s got a high volleyball IQ, he was able to spread the ball around. He dumped the ball when needed.”
Franky Capo also played at the libero position, and was eighth in the state with 264 digs. With the lineup changes, senior Max Hoffman moved into libero. He also played well, with 7.2 digs per match during the tournament.
“He played lights out, especially in the championship match,” said Capo. “He had so many amazing digs, kept the ball in play, really hustled extremely hard. He definitely stepped up.”
Senior Henry Dufour was the player who got injured right before the quarter-finals. He was right behind Hernandez in the offense, as he averaged 5.5 kills per match for the season.
Senior Eli Buckler was the “x-factor,” said Capo. Buckler normally played at the middle hitter position, but after Dufour’s injury, Buckler “did a little bit of everything,” said Capo, including hitting quite a few aces. Capo also credited him with playing “great defense for a big guy” and for hitting a good amount of kills on offense. Buckler was also named to the All-Tournament Team.
Seniors Keegan Hurst and Nate Heffron, junior Cole Moritz and sophomore Zach Lewis also were solid contributors for the Tigers, with Moritz and Lewis both making 1.6 blocks per match. Other players on the roster were seniors Bryce Hagerty, Evan Milburn and Jack Bagley, juniors Bryant Cochran, Austin Pifer and Kevin Burks, and sophomore William Schnefke.