After both having extra time off, the Stamford Black Knights and the Staples Wreckers will shake off the rust and duke it out at 4:00 p.m. on Thursday. Both come into the game bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Stamford is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of Connecticut's top teams: Ridgefield, who was ranked 24th at the time (Stamford was ranked 17th). The Black Knights walked away with a 3-1 victory over the Tigers on Friday.
While Stamford might've won, it sure wasn't easy: Ridgefield scored at least 19 points in every set they played. The final score came out to 29-27, 25-20, 23-25, 25-19.
Alec Antipuesto
| 04/25/25 vs Ridgefield | 10 |
| 04/23/25 @ New Canaan | 13 |
| 04/21/25 @ Danbury | 12 |
| 04/17/25 vs Ludlowe | 12 |
| 04/14/25 @ Masuk | 8 |
| + 10 more games |
Stamford can attribute much of their success to MD Arfat Chowdhury, who had 11 digs and four assists, and Alec Antipuesto, who had 11 digs, ten kills, and eight aces. Antipuesto is on a roll when it comes to kills, as he's now had seven or more in each of the last 15 games he's played dating back to last season. Christopher Aquino also deserves some recognition as he had his first kills of the season.
They weren't the only good server: Stamford was lethal from the service line and finished the game with 14 aces. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now served at least seven aces every time they've taken the court this season.
Staples not only won on Monday, but they posted their biggest win since May 13, 2024 (when they won 3-0). They were the clear victors by a 3-0 margin over Ludlowe. The win continues a trend for the Wreckers in their matchups with the Falcons: they've now won three in a row.
The 3-0 score doesn't show just how dominant Staples was: they took every set by at least 13 points. The match finished with set scores of 25-9, 25-12, 25-11.
Staples now has a winning record of 3-2. As for Stamford, they pushed their record up to 7-2 with the victory, which was their fourth straight at home.
Everything went Stamford's way against Staples in their previous matchup back in May of 2024, as Stamford made off with a 3-0 win. Will the Black Knights repeat their success, or do the Wreckers have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
