Kingston’s volleyball team, missing some key players, went down 3-1 to fancied Portsmouth in a tight match this week.
Oscar Galvany
Kingston’s volleyball team, missing some key players, went down 3-1 to fancied Portsmouth in a tight match on Wednesday this week.
Portsmouth took a very tight first set but Kingston came back strongly to triumph in the second. Short of practice and fitness, they could not keep up the pressure at the Kingston College court, however, and faded at the end of the match.
Kingston’s captain Omid Samadi, a 20-year-old business management student, said: “We were missing three of our players, and two of them are really important players for the team.”
Tomek Stepien, the assistant coach of the team, added: “This is the first match of the season, which means that many players were new to the team, and it’s always difficult in the beginning.”
Although the technique and perseverance of the Kingston players, especially that of Michal Muciek, always kept Kingston in the contest, a remarkable performance by Portsmouth’s star, Everitt, made it more difficult for the home side to catch up.
With one set won by each side after an hour of playing, the visitors were able to refresh their team by making a few changes, something that Kingston did not have the option to do.
Samadi said: “Some of our new players had not been able to train yet, so they were sitting on the bench, but we could not make many changes.”
The fatigue of the Kingston squad became evident after losing the third set, with Portsmouth securing victory in the fourth with a sequence of strong serves.
However, Kingston showed a tough attitude against strong opponents, which bodes well for the season ahead.