2026 - The End of the Seasons…
6/9/26
Update:
Hello Everyone…
Following the publishing of this article, I was made aware of multiple online harassment / bullying situations involving players mentioned in this post. This is not only distasteful but entirely unacceptable. ResV does not condone this behavior nor is anything from ResV submitted to the RI volleyball community with any venomous intent. ResV celebrates the high school volleyball world and tries to highlight all the top talent, play, and efforts from players across the state at all levels…with distinctions made based on volleyball play and the expertise acquired from over 20 years of coaching the sport.
In reaching out to some of the league officials to learn more about the incidents, changes have been made to this article based on actions taken by the teams involved and the league. More so, perhaps this is the moment that we can recognize that the direction teams (some more then others) are going in terms of celebrations, interactions, and online engagement throughout the league have gone too far. The beauty of the sport is that we can compete, but still respect one another…it feels for the last four years or so, that we’ve lost that idea a bit.
Volleyball is a game, and we all love it. It’s what connects us to one another, regardless of all of our differences. Situations like these are poison to that concept because the game shouldn’t be played with vile, venom, or intimidation…it should be two teams working hard, appreciating the play and teamwork, as well as all the people involved on both sides of the net…regardless of the score or result. No player should have to deal with online bullying pre, or post, match via social media or messaging from opposing players or fans. It’s shameful and disgusting.
The RI boys volleyball community is small, talented, and interconnected…lets learn from this for the future…compete, create memories on the court with your teammates, and be respectful to all…especially your opponents. This is key, because all the opponents in your high school matches…they’re just future teammates later on if you continue the sport in college, recreationally, etc.
Lastly, the decisions you make are what your reputation becomes. Work to develop impulse control and always consider, will this decision / action effect how people see me? Guard your reputation with everything you have…because ultimately, it is all you have. Just like trust, your reputation takes time to earn but can be tarnished in a second…and it is incredibly hard to resuscitate if destroyed.
Stay well, and here is hoping for a better ending to next year’s season…
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We are done!
The 2026 RI Boys volleyball finals on Saturday showed tactical decisions and following the game plan can lead to truly devasting results. Three winners, three sets to get it done, only three sets truly close.
I finished 17 - 6 in the playoffs, but only one out of the three finals matches correct. Not bad for a season / year where I’ve had the least amount of attention I could give… Still, the ones I got wrong…I got really wrong…which made me do what I do in my college coaching career…circle back, autopsy the situation, and figure out what I can learn from the event.
Let’s start with Mt. Hope / EWG. When I look back on the match, the immediate thought is how could I not have seen that result coming? My justification starts with the match these two teams had in the regular season where it went five. I watched the entire game and was impressed by both sides. Here were two teams that were way stronger then the D3 norm and throughout the rest of the year I was just stoked at the prospect of seeing them play again.
A deeper dive…EWG was remarkably young. Only one senior and junior on the floor…the rest sophomores… Mt. Hope was a senior experienced team who had won it before…upsetting the favored Portsmouth Patriots just last year. Again, I kept thinking of the regular season match. Yes, that five-setter was at EWG…but then it hit me, RIC is a way different feel. It’s a bigger place, tons of room…it takes some time to get used to that when you’re used to playing in a small high school gym. So, not only do you have a very young team tasting the brightest lights for the first time but also the gym was crazy different…and your opposition already had experience in there.
I did flip a coin for that prediction and the coin spurned me. However, as everyone saw, Mt. Hope controlled it throughout. EWG has a wonderful future ahead of them as the next two years, they’re going to be in the mix from start to finish…but the Huskies owned 2026. Not much more to say on it…
This match also started the heckling of yours truly, on the day…a tradition that’s now three years old… I did notice that no one celebrates with me when they win and I’ve picked them to win. It’s only when I pick against them, that I get both barrels. lol. Adults heckling me was new this year, but also hysterical. As I told one of my assistants on the broadcast, if you’re going to be publicly opinionated, you have to be willing to take the heat if you’re wrong…which brings us to La Salle…
First, I called the West Warwick / Westerly game correctly…for the most part. I did think the Bulldogs would take a set off the Wizards (and they should have taken set two) but credit to West Warwick. The Wizards made plays when they needed to and were able to frustrate Westerly late…which is how you win a lot of games. West Warwick was pretty dominate all year…Nothing showed it more then when they were able to wriggle out of the set two jam they were in and flex in set three to win the whole thing… This match would be the best, most competitive match we’d get on the day.
La Salle…oh, the Rams… The way I saw it, there was a way to slow them down, but no one really went that direction with it this playoff season…which is perfectly fine. There are many different ways to be successful in this game and certainly the strategies I subscribe to aren’t always the way to go… Still, I figured if Hendricken could put enough pressure at the service line, it would disrupt what the Rams did offensively which in turn would allow the Hawks to dominate on the left. None of that thinking happened, though.
Instead, La Salle systematically took the Hawks apart. I think La Salle was in system 90% of the time, got everything they wanted, and didn’t allow Hendricken to get up and running. It was a masterclass of ball control and serving choice at the high school level that nullified everything Bishop Hendricken was trying to accomplish. There were some bright spots for the Hawks, but not enough, and in the end, the Rams ground the match to a halt…winning in a dominant three. They shared their celebration with me afterwards…which again, was hysterical.
Going deeper into the match…the precision needed to serve either team into uncomfortable spots was with La Salle based on their mean jump floating style. Bishop Hendricken had some jump floaters as well, but the main weapon at the line was jump top-spin which, unless directed carefully, often found it’s way to La Salle’s libero, who is keenly deft at handling those…which meant when it mattered most, the Rams were in system. Meanwhile, the spot serving with floats, that had a lot of action on them, plus low on the net, from the Rams meant the Hawk’s setter was constantly on the run and nothing was comfortable.
At the men’s volleyball level, in system vs. out of system, is often the whole ball of wax. La Salle was in more often then not. Hendricken was out more often then not. This is the basic story of the match. When making my prediction, I felt the roles could have been reversed…and it just didn’t happen. Both teams have some excellent players on their side, but it came down to the serve and pass games…like most volleyball matches…and La Salle was brilliant at it that night.
The 2026 RI Boy’s Volleyball Championships Results
D3 Final…
Mt. Hope dominated from start to finish in this one and never let EWG get a moment to think. It’s was an excellent performance from the entire Mt. Hope crew…cementing back to back titles for the Huskies, which few schools get to say they’ve done. Not much else to say…
Here is what I got out of this one…
Dylan Shaw for Mt. Hope was not fooling around in this one. Every swing he took was with purpose and power. His attack was completely overwhelming for EWG.
Dylan DeOliveira was the secret (or not so secret) weapon for Mt. Hope. Even when things got slightly bumpy in set one, DeOliveria was the steady hand at the wheel. Sets were all hittable, serve was tough, and his leadership to keep everyone focused on the goal was very impressive.
The middles attack from Jackson Gould and Matt Moran was effective all day and allowed Shaw and Bradley Harrington to just bang away on the left with mostly just single blocks.
Zoltan Libertini did get some kills and blocks in the match providing some push back for the Scarlet Knights.
EWG’s Will Edwards also ran a very interesting play a couple of times where Derik Payette would start in pos 2 and then run a full slide type of approach all the way to pos 4…with a middle jumping in the 3…for a very interesting attack…
D3 Champions - Mt. Hope
All Playoff Tournament Team…
MVP- Dylan Shaw - Mt. Hope
Dylan DeOliveira - Mt. Hope
Bradley Harrington - Mt. Hope
Zoltan Libertini - Exeter / West Greenwich
Casey Kretchman - Exeter / West Greenwich
Jaymeson Taylor - St. Raphael’s
Pierre Leinz Sanatus - Hope
Unsung Heroes of the Championship Match…
Jackson Gould - Mt. Hope
Jacob Lopes - Mt. Hope
Arion Ferris - Mt. Hope
Will Edwards - Exeter / West Greenwich
Derik Payette - Exeter / West Greenwich
D2 Final…
One could tell that this was a rivalry that both teams wanted to be on the winning side of. The match, though only going three, was the most competitive of the three finals events. Both crews were working hard to cement this one in their favor…with the Wizards drawing first blood in a tight first set. The second set had Westerly in control all the way to the end, only to have West Warwick fight off four or five set points to wrangle control and win in extra frames. Those types of set wins can be the actual nail in the coffin…and it was so. Even though, Westerly fought in set three, the wheels were already wobbling off… West Warwick would finish with four straight aces to claim the title.
Here is what I got out of this one…
Henry Kenyon was fierce in the middle and it was fun to see he and Collin Kelly doing battle at the net.
Kelly is going on to play basketball in college, but his volleyball game isn’t too shabby. His presence at the net was crucial for West Warwick.
The top two sophomores on the court that day, Grady Auth and Michael Gallo, are going to be very good in the future. It’s going to be exciting to see how good they get.
Ball control, once again, was the determining factor for both teams. Alex Osmena was brilliant in both serving and receiving.
Much love to Nate Paciga. Always great seeing big Nate…
West Warwick’s celebration for winning their first state title in volleyball (they hadn’t reached the semi-finals in a decade…and truthfully, I don’t know for certain if they won a title before that in boys volleyball…but at least hadn’t won one in a decade) was in the stands with all of their supporters, parents, friends, and family. I thought it was pretty awesome.
D2 Champions - West Warwick
All Playoff Tournament Team…
MVP- Alex Osmena - West Warwick
Michael Gallo - West Warwick
Colin Kelly - West Warwick
Henry Kenyon - Westerly
Grady Auth - Westerly
Pablo Estrada - Central
Javonny Lopez - Central Falls
Unsung Heroes of the Championship Match…
Ian Degnan - West Warwick
Santiago Saucedo - West Warwick
Ethan Pereia - West Warwick
Nate Paciga - Westerly
Asa Mayo - Westerly
D1 Final…
It was a pretty straightforward affair… La Salle was able to serve tough and keep Hendricken off balance the entire night. Meanwhile, the Rams passed well and kept everything in system which allowed them to score at will and keep Hendricken from getting momentum. The key players for Hendricken fought, but there was no stopping this Ram side who just dominated the ball control and serving battles…as well as the net.
Here is what I learned from this one…
The play of Jayden Simao was hugely responsible for the success of the Rams in this one, and all season, especially in the playoffs. Simao dug everything, kept his team in-system 90% of the time, and served tough that night and all year.
Flavio had a dominating match along with Simao. He was deadly from the “D” zone and just scored whenever he wanted to. His block was real good as well. Almost a perfect match from Tavares.
Because the Rams were in system so often, Cooper Amaral was able to just make great decisions about who got the ball and when. He was outstanding.
Andrew Ramos had a tough outing and a lot of it had to do with La Salle’s serving pressure. Still, Ramos battled and had some bright spots. There just wasn’t enough opportunity for him.
Zack Roebuck battled valiantly as well in this one for the Hawks, but there were too many holes in the dam. Roebuck was able to score on the pins a little bit, which was interesting…including some bombs from the “D” zone. He’s got another year left and it’s going to be interesting to see how good he gets.
The other shoe that dropped for La Salle was the play of Daniel Ayorinde. Once it became apparent, in the semi-finals against NK, that Ayorinde was going to require help, it immediately made it tough to schedule the block to Flavio.
D1 Champions - La Salle Academy
All Playoff Tournament Team…
MVP- Jayden Simao - La Salle Academy
Cooper Amaral - La Salle Academy
Stephan Bucco - La Salle Academy
Andrew Ramos - Bishop Hendricken
Zack Roebuck - Bishop Hendricken
Cam Gates - East Greenwich
Tim Harrington - North Kingstown
Unsung Heroes of the Championship Match…
David St. Onge - La Salle Academy
Jackson Potter - La Salle Academy
Rocco Czaja - Bishop Hendricken
Luke Girgis - Bishop Hendricken
Jackson Kretzer - Bishop Hendricken
2026 ResV Season Awards
D3:
ResV Player of the Year - Dylan Shaw - Sr. - Mt. Hope
Runner Up - Rowan Pereira - Jr. - Toll Gate
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ResV Coaching Staff of the Year - Mt. Hope
Runner Up - St. Raphael’s
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ResV Defensive Player of the Year - Zoltan Libertini - Jr. - Exeter / West Greenwich
Runner Up - Timileyin Durojaye - Sr. - North Providence
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ResV Setter of the Year - Dylan DeOliveira - Sr. - Mt. Hope
Runner Up - Will Edwards - So. - Exeter / West Greenwich
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ResV Newcomer of the Year - Bradley Harrington - So. - Mt. Hope
Runner Up - Casey Kretchman - So. - Exeter / West Greenwich
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Go Time Line Up (If I needed to create a team to win a must-win match…):
Pin- Dylan Shaw - Sr. - Mt. Hope
Pin- Rowan Pereira - Jr. - Toll Gate
Middle- Zoltan Libertini - Jr. - Exeter / West Greenwich
Middle- Timileyin Durojaye - Sr. - North Providence
Pin- Bradley Harrington - So. - Mt. Hope
Setter- Dylan DeOliveira - Sr. - Mt. Hope
Libero- Toprak Kalakci - Sr. - North Providence
Utility- Derik Payette - So. - Exeter West Greenwich
Coaching Staff- Mt. Hope
D2:
ResV Player of the Year - Henry Kenyon - Sr. - Westerly
Runner Up - Jack Casey - Sr. - Portsmouth
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ResV Coaching Staff of the Year - West Warwick
Runner Up - Central Falls
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ResV Defensive Player of the Year - Colin Kelly - Sr. - West Warwick
Runner Up - Dewa Putra - Jr. - Central
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ResV Setter of the Year - Grady Auth - So. - Westerly
Runner Up - Jovanny Lopez - Sr. - Central Falls
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ResV Newcomer of the Year - Michael Gallo - So. - West Warwick
Runner Up - Cooper Markley - So. - Pawtucket
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Go Time Line Up (If I needed to create a team to win a must-win match…):
Pin- Tyler Biddle - Sr. - Lincoln
Pin- Alex Osmena - Sr. - West Warwick
Middle- Jack Casey - Sr. - Portsmouth
Middle- Colin Kelly - Sr. - West Warwick
Pin- Michael Gallo - So. - West Warwick
Setter- Grady Auth - So. - Westerly
Libero- Jovanny Lopez - Sr. - Central Falls
Utility- Henry Kenyon - Sr. - Westerly
Coaching Staff- West Warwick
D1:
ResV Player of the Year - Jayden Simao - Jr. - La Salle Academy
Runner Up - Andrew Ramos - Sr. - Bishop Hendricken
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ResV Coaching Staff of the Year - La Salle Academy
Runner Up - Bishop Hendricken
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ResV Defensive Player of the Year - Jayden Simao - Jr. - La Salle Academy
Runner Up - Jaxson Vachon - Sr. - Chariho
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ResV Setter of the Year - Cooper Amaral - Jr. - La Salle Academy
Runner Up - Ashton Mak - Sr. - Cranston West
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ResV Newcomer of the Year - Reid McCann - So. - Chariho - Pin
Runner Up - Aiden Acuna - So. - East Greenwich - Middle
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Go Time Line Up (If I needed to create a team to win a must-win match…):
Pin- Andrew Ramos - Sr. - Bishop Hendricken
Pin- Cam Gates - Jr. - East Greenwich
Middle- Sean Peters - Sr. - North Kingstown
Middle- Matt Rosemark - Sr. - East Greenwich
Pin- Flavio Tavares - Sr. - La Salle Academy
Setter- Cooper Amaral - Jr. - La Salle Academy
Libero- Jayden Simao - Jr. - La Salle Academy
Utility- Cam Marcotte - Sr. - Coventry
Coaching Staff- La Salle Academy
Overall:
Player of the Year - Jayden Simao - Jr. - La Salle Academy
Runner Up - Andrew Ramos - Sr. - Bishop Hendricken
Runner Up - Henry Kenyon - Sr. - Westerly
Runner Up - Dylan Shaw - Sr. - Mt. Hope
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Coaching Staff of the Year - La Salle Academy
Runner Up - West Warwick
Runner Up - Mt. Hope
Runner Up - Central Falls
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Defensive Player of the Year - Jayden Simao - Jr. - La Salle Academy
Runner Up - Jaxson Vachon - Sr. - Chariho
Runner Up - Henry Kenyon - Sr. - Westerly
Runner Up - Colin Kelly - Sr. - West Warwick
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Setter of the Year - Cooper Amaral - Jr. - La Salle Academy
Runner Up - Grady Auth - So. - Westerly
Runner Up - Jovanny Lopez - Sr. - Central Falls
Runner Up - Ashton Mak - Sr. - Cranston West
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Newcomer of the Year - Michael Gallo - So. - West Warwick
Runner Up - Reid McCann - So. - Chariho - Pin
Runner Up - Bradley Harrington - So. - Mt. Hope
Runner Up - Aiden Acuna - So. - East Greenwich - Middle
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2026 RI Boys Volleyball All-ResV Teams:
First Team All ResV-
Pin- Andrew Ramos - Sr. - Bishop Hendricken
Pin- Cam Gates - Jr. - East Greenwich
Middle- Henry Kenyon - Sr. - Westerly
Middle- Sean Peters - Sr. - North Kingstown
Pin- Donny Park - Sr. - Barrington
Setter- Cooper Amaral - Jr. - La Salle Academy
Libero- Jayden Simao - Jr. - La Salle Academy
Utility- Cam Marcotte - Sr. - Coventry
Coaching Staff - La Salle Academy
Second Team All ResV-
Pin- Ian Nascimento - Sr. - Classical
Pin- Jordan Frisone - Jr. - Cranston East
Middle- Zack Roebuck - Jr. - Bishop Hendricken
Middle- Matt Rosemark - Sr. - East Greenwich
Pin- Aggerson Vetiaque - Jr. - Cranston East
Setter- Grady Auth - So. - Westerly
Libero- Jaxson Vachon - Sr. - Chariho
Utility- Ashton Mak - Sr. - Cranston West
Coaching Staff - West Warwick
Third Team All ResV-
Pin- Owen Schneider - Sr. - North Kingstown
Pin- Cal Oberacker - Sr. - Barrington
Middle- Jack Casey - Sr. - Portsmouth
Middle- Colin Kelly - Sr. - West Warwick
Pin- Ethan Pereira - Jr. - East Providence
Setter- Robbie Daniels - Jr. - Cranston East
Libero- Tim Harrington - Sr. - North Kingstown
Utility- Jayden Yang - Jr. - North Kingstown
Coaching Staff- Mt. Hope
Fourth Team All ResV-
Pin- Landon Marland - Sr. - Chariho
Pin- Caden Pina - Sr. - Classical
Middle- Colin Kelly - Sr. - West Warwick
Middle- Caleb Locke - Jr. - Chariho
Pin- Ziyue Wang - Sr. - Cranston West
Setter- Ryan Yin - Sr. - Bishop Hendricken
Libero- Ean Williamson - Sr. - East Providence
Utility- Jovanny Lopez - Sr. - Central Falls
Coaching Staff- Central Falls
Fifth Team All ResV-
Pin- Tyler Biddle - Sr. - Lincoln - Pin
Pin- Alex Osmena - Sr. - West Warwick
Middle- Riley Wilson - Sr. - East Providence
Middle- Aiden Acuna - So. - East Greenwich
Pin- Michael Gallo - So. - West Warwick
Setter- Dylan DeOliveira - Sr. - Mt. Hope
Libero- Dewa Putra - Jr. - Central
Utility- Milo Sy - Sr. - East Greenwich
Coaching Staff- St. Raphael’s
Honorable Mentions (In no particular order):
Gabe Graff - So. - Barrington - Middle
Stephan Bucco - Sr. - La Salle Academy - Pin
Bradley Harrington - So. - Mt. Hope - Pin
Logan Lane - Sr. - Barrington - Setter
Nate Paciga - Sr. - Westerly - Middle
Jackson Gould - Sr. - Mt. Hope - Middle
Rocco Czaja - Sr. - Bishop Hendricken - Utillity
Emanuel Tavares - Sr. - Central Falls - Pin
Pablo Estrada - Sr. - Central - Pin
Zoltan Libertini - Jr. - Exeter/West Greenwich - Middle
Reid McCann - So. - Chariho - Pin
Michael Smith - Sr. - Coventry - Pin
Sean Dolan - Jr. - Cranston East - Utillity
Henry De La Zerda - Sr. - Cranston West - Libero
Eli Lopez - Sr. - Cranston West - Pin
Zion Sun - Sr. - East Greenwich - Libero
Rainen Paquet - Jr. - East Greewich - Setter
Zach Lapierre - Sr. - East Greenwich - Pin
Derik Payette - So. - Exeter / West Greenwich - Pin
Casey Kretchman - So. - Exeter / West Greenwich - Pin
Will Edwards - So. - Exeter / West Greenwich - Setter
Leidson Centeio - Sr. - Lincoln - Middle
Eli Torres - Sr. - Juanita Sanchez - Middle
Armando Ramirez - Sr. - Juanita Sanchez - Pin
Mark Sardelli - Jr. - North Kingstown - Pin
Timileyin Durojaye - Sr. - North Providence - Middle
Toprak Kalakci - Sr. - North Providence - Libero
Chase Wolstencroft - Sr. - South Kingstown - Setter
Luke Brock - Sr. - South Kingstown - Pin
Jaymeson Taylor - Sr. - St. Raphael’s - Middle
Rowan Pereira - Jr. - Toll Gate - Pin
Bryan Leon - Sr. - Pawtucket - Pin
Cooper Markley - So. - Pawtucket - Middle
Note - Did the best I could to identify the best players in the state. If I missed you, apologies…come back stronger and better next year!
Final 2026 ResV Top 15…
La Salle Academy - D1 Champs
Bishop Hendricken
East Greenwich
North Kingstown
Cranston East
West Warwick - D2 Champs
Barrington
Westerly
East Providence
Mt. Hope - D3 Champs
Central Falls
Coventry
Classical
Central
Lincoln
Receiving Votes: Exeter/West Greenwich, North Providence, Chariho, Cranston West, Portsmouth, Pawtucket
NOTE- Thank you to everyone who sent me information this season! This year it was harder then ever to find stats from matches and obtain relative information. I may not respond to your email, but I am always grateful for the information sent to me. Please know you were instrumental in keeping ResV rolling this season…
To send updates, stories, and players college decisions…or inquire about coffee beans that Coach roasts himself, to Coach Reslow - Scott.Reslow@protonmail.com
Coaches! Please feel free to reach out if interested in scheduling some time to talk shop! I’d love to help your program out!