After both having extra time off, the Bay Shore Marauders and the Connetquot T-Birds will shake off the cobwebs and hit the court against one another at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday. Both teams are coming into the match red-hot, with Bay Shore sitting on three straight wins and Connetquot on 16.
While Bay Shore's victory against Longwood wasn't quite the blowout it was the last time the pair played, they still came out on top. The Marauders won by a set and slipped past the Lions 3-2. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest win the Marauders have posted since October 6th.
Bay Shore had a slow start but a hot finish: after dropping the first two sets, they turned around to win the next three. The match finished with set scores of 19-25, 23-25, 25-17, 25-13, 15-11.
Meanwhile, Connetquot had already proven themselves in the regular season and they didn't miss a beat now that it's playoff time. They were the clear victors by a 3-0 margin over Ward Melville on Wednesday. Give some credit to the fans of both teams: the last three times they've met, the home team has come away the winner.
Connetquot not only won, but also showed off some consistency: they kept Ward Melville between 17 and 20 points across their sets. The final score came out to 25-20, 25-17, 25-18.
Bay Shore better keep an eye on Elena Carro. She was instrumental in Connetquot's win, getting ten digs and two aces.
Connetquot was lethal from the service line and finished the match with 12 aces. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now served at least five aces in 12 consecutive contests.
Bay Shore's record now sits at 17-3-1. As for Connetquot, their record is now 27-2-1.
Bay Shore took their victory against Connetquot in their previous matchup back in September of 2023 by a conclusive 3-0 score. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Marauders since the team won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
