After three long years of coming up short, the Wayne Valley Volleyball team finally claimed victory at their home invitational, defeating powerhouse Passaic County Technical Institute, a team that had dominated at the tournament in recent years. The moment the final point hit the floor, the crowd erupted. Students, parents, and teammates flooded the court, screaming, chanting; the energy was electric. The eight seniors on the team were the happiest because they realized it was their last home tournament, and they made it a memorable one. “We’ve been waiting for this moment since freshman year,” said senior captain Anisa Dzelesi, her voice echoing the energy that filled the Wayne Valley gym Saturday afternoon. 

Valley knew they were probably going to end up facing PCTI in the end. The championship was far from easy. PCTI came into the tournament as the favorite–Wayne Valley, however, ended the tournament with a mission: to defeat PCTI and crown themselves as champions. Despite all the excitement, the team faced challenges early in the final match, falling behind 0-5 against PCTI. “I think that really threw us off, but then we quickly realized that we had to fight harder to win. We overcame this by continuously serving the ball in and playing our best,” explained senior captain Amira Dzelesi. 

 As the game reached a nail-biting 24-24 tie, Wayne Valley showed remarkable composure, edging ahead to take the lead 25-24 in a pivotal moment. “Our energy as a whole was much louder than in previous years. At this point, we know every player on their team along with their tendencies, so that helped a lot,” Amira Dzelesi added.

The two senior captains, Amira and Anisa Dzelesi, claim the new varsity team really showed up and put up an excellent fight. Even though most of the players on the team are first-time varsity players, everyone on the roster played a crucial role in securing the win. Amira and Anisa explained that their pregame huddle was important to keep composure amongst these players, as they told all the freshmen that the PCTI’s crowd would be very loud and they couldn’t let it get in their heads. During the game, Wayne Valley kept itself in control and played its best, clinching an incredible win and trophy to signify its well-earned victory.

After the major win, Wayne Valley continued their season strong with a 6-1 record and 5-0 in Big North Independence.