Fledgling Central Regional Volleyball Team on a Roll

Volleyball comes naturally to Nick Salvemini. His uncle has played professionally on the beach circuit. and Salvemini spent plenty of days playing with friends in their backyards.

But last year, when Central Regional played a varsity schedule for the first time, he started to play seriously.

"I started playing in an indoor winter league," he said. "We're all good friends. I've been playing like this for a year and a half and I haven't stopped. That's helped us."

It shows on a Golden Eagles team with a 10-6 record in only its second year and Shore Conference A Central champions who are preparing for a trip to the NJSIAA Tournament. It was a drastic turnaround from a 2-8 maiden season last spring.

"We did not know what to expect," said Salvemini. "We've played one game at a time and wound up making school history."

It's history in a very young sense. But the team's achievements have already set the bar high for future Central Regional teams.

"It's kind of numbing," coach Jeff Mangold said. "My goal was to be at this point in five to six years. That's how long I thought it would take to be competitive.They're great kids. They're competitors and keep training and want to keep getting better. They're never satisfied with their performance and want to get better."

Salvemini and Dan Tarabokija, the only other senior on the team, are senior captains. Mangold, who is the guidance counselor for both seniors, said he knew Tarabokija has athletic skills from when he coached him in cross country in middle school. Juniors Schyler Jaworowski and Nick Monguso are the junior captains.

Monguso and Salviemini are 1-2 in many statistical categories. Monguso has team highs of 128 assists and 129 sets and his 66 kills is second to hard-hitting Jaworowski's 75 after the first 15 matches. Salvemini is second in assists with 123, sets with 126 and digs with 62. Jaworowski has 75 digs.

Middle hitter junior Cody Ertle, has 20 blocks after 15 matches. Sophomore Ambrose Powell is an outside hitter. The libero - a designated defender - is split between sophomore Chris Penta and junior Robbie Gonzalez.

Unlike many teams that run a formation with five players and one well-established setter, Mangold calls his formation a 6-2, with two players sharing in the setting who rotate into the attack. It makes for more of a finesse game of setting up shots off good ball movement than a power style.

"With one setter, you need an exceptional athlete. This give us more weapons," Mangold said. "We don't depend on one guy. On one day, one kid could be better than the others and on another it could be somebody else. Everyone can put the ball away."

Central Regional comes off a sweep by Colts Neck,  25-23, 25-21, on May 10, in which Ertle had four kills and Salvemini had 18 assists. But Mangold is confident his team will bounce back for its next match on May 16 against Red Bank Catholic, which beat the Golden Eagles earlier in the season. The team's other losses are to Toms River South and Southern and Wall, which finished tied for first in Shore Conference A South.

"They don't give up," Mangold said. That's what I love about them." 

It showed in the match prior to the one against Colts Neck  when Central Regional on May 4 when, for the second time this season, it rallied back from losing the opening game to win a match. This time it was a big one against highly regarded Manchester, 19-25, 25-23, 25-20, to go 8-0 in the division and clinched the title. The other comeback came against Monsignor Donovan with a dramatic 27-25 win in the deciding third game.

"We try to do the fundamentals, to pass the ball, block it," Salvemini said. "Not like Manchester, which pounds the ball. We get the touches out, pass the ball."

Monguso powered eight kills and had one block, two digs and 12 assists against Manchester. Salvemini tallied three kills, two blocks, three digs and 14 assists.

"We can do the same thing as we did against Manchester," Salvemini said. "We can do big things from here."