Boys Volleyball Advances to State Semifinals with Win Over Taunton
June 7, 2025
• Needham will play Natick in the semifinal round on June 10 at 5 p.m.
No. 3 Needham boys volleyball defeated No. 27 Taunton in four sets (25-15, 25-18, 22-25, 25-22) on Friday, June 6 to advance to their fifth consecutive MIAA state semifinal.
“It’s a great feeling being back here,” senior Will McDonald said. “But just over there holding that trophy, we’re like, ‘We want the next one.’ So that’s where my mind’s at.”
Needham started strong in the first set, jumping out to a 7-2 lead, which forced Taunton to take an early timeout. Needham added to that advantage, pushing it to an eight-point gap in the middle of the set. Andrew Kurdziel led the way offensively for Needham with six kills, two blocks and an ace as the Rockets took the first set 25-15.
Taunton scored the first point of the second set for their first lead of the game and took a three-point lead before the Rockets came back to tie it at four. After some back-and-forth play, Needham went on a 4-0 run and eventually took a six-point lead, 20-14. The Rockets’ chemistry, combined with a few errors by the Tigers, gave Needham the 2-0 lead, winning the set 25-18.
The Tigers found their groove in the third, holding a four-point lead early before the Rockets battled back to tie the set at 16. But the Tigers outscored Needham 9-6 from that point, taking the set 25-22.
Needham bounced back in the fourth, leading 17-9, but the Tigers pulled within one late, 22-21. However, the Rockets held on, finishing the game with a kill from Will Rozman. Matthew Cloonan totaled 13 kills for the Rockets, followed by Kurdziel with 11 and McDonald with nine.
As the Rockets head into their fifth straight semifinal, they’ve learned to tune out the pressure that comes with high expectations.
“All the years we’ve been in high school together, we’ve had high expectations,” McDonald said. “The program has always been great, and the weight has fallen onto our shoulders, but we just ignore it. We’re just here to play volleyball, have fun and win games.”
Needham will face No. 2 Natick in the next round on Tuesday, June 10 at 5 p.m. at Concord-Carlisle High School. The Rockets won the first meeting between the two in the regular season, 3-1, but the Redhawks evened the series with a sweep on May 20.
Check out more postgame comments from McDonald and Kurdziel via our Instagram:
View this post on Instagram
