Titans fall to Falcons, will look to improve

Brenton Bauerle
Posted 4/16/15

Sitting in the gymnasium prior to game time of the Toll Gate-Cranston West Division II volleyball match-up on Thursday, spring love was in the air; just before the first serve, a young man walked up …

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Titans fall to Falcons, will look to improve

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Sitting in the gymnasium prior to game time of the Toll Gate-Cranston West Division II volleyball match-up on Thursday, spring love was in the air; just before the first serve, a young man walked up to his future prom date with a folded up paper heart that read “Prom” and got the yes he had so desperately hoped for. Unfortunately, that would be the only love the Toll Gate Titans would receive all night, as they were subjected to a three-game sweep at the hands of the championship-contending Cranston West Falcons.

It was obvious from the first game that Cranston West was the more experienced team. Though Toll Gate was able to keep the game close, never trailing by more than five points until a late Falcons’ run to end the game, the outcome seemed to be in little doubt, as West’s offense was able to put away almost every clean opportunity at the net en route to a 25-16 win in the opening frame.

One of the biggest differences between the two teams seemed to be their cohesiveness, as West was consistently able to transition smoothly from offense to defense, while Toll Gate struggled in that regard. Indeed, the difference between the two teams was literally audible from the outset, as the Falcons seemed to make a concerted effort to communicate and stay on the same page, whereas the Titans seemed to be out of sync for most of the night.

In comparison to the 3-0 Falcons, Toll Gate looked like a team that had a long ways to go, as it dropped the last two games in ignominious fashion, yielding two big deficits due in large part to their own errors.

Though the Titans do boast a few senior starters, many of them are playing volleyball for the first time, and according to head coach Ryan Garno, improvement is the name of the game for the inexperienced Titans.

“We’re farther along than I expected us to be,” said Garno. “But we are always looking to improve every match.”

On the other side, Cranston West continued what has been a stellar start to its season. Coming off a win against West Warwick – one of the favorites to win the Division II title – the Falcons entered the game 2-0 despite missing their captain, outside hitter David Anthony, for their tilt against West Warwick due to a case of the flu.

Anthony returned with a vengeance against the Titans, however, notching 11 kills in only three games and going seemingly the entire game without mishandling a serve or pass. Asked about his captain, Cranston West head coach Mike Tow had nothing but praise for the senior star.

“David is our leader,” said Tow. “He knows he has to step up (into a bigger role) this season, and tonight he showed he can do that.”

Moving forward, it seems that love may indeed be in the air for the Falcons; with a 3-0 start to the season and an experienced and talented roster, they will surely be factoring into any conversation concerning the Division II championship.

The Titans, on the other hand, will be looking to steadily improve and get in the win column sooner rather than later.

Toll Gate fell, 3-0, to a tough Cranston East team on Monday night to fall to 0-4 on the season. It was back in action on Wednesday, looking for its first win against West Warwick, but results were unavailable at press time.

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