Sussex Academy boys’ volleyball optimistic about program’s future
With an eye on the future of the program, the Sussex Academy boys’ volleyball team is hoping to get back to winning in 2025 and beyond.
“I'm seeing a lot of new players coming in, and a lot of them look very promising,” said senior Daniel Keshishyan. “We did lose a lot of great players last year, but I'm sure we have many that can take their place; the big goal for this year is just to get some great wins, [and] build the team off from there.”
Keshishyan is the lone senior on a squad that features a trio of skilled sophomores – outside hitters Mack Lawson and Desmond Davis as well as Jovan Jean-Louis. They will be led by first-year coach Dreonna Phillips, a graduate of Indian River and a coach for Coastal Volleyball Club of Delaware.
“They're all pretty new to the sport, so I'm excited to get them interested in the game and to love volleyball,” Phillips said. “I really want them to love playing.”
Surrounded by tough competition at Cape, Delmarva Christian and Indian River, it won’t be easy for the Seahawks to compete with their neighbors, but Phillips believes it is a good opportunity for the boys to improve their form.
“It's better when you get to play up against better teams to get more rallies,” he said. “It's way more fun, and the game's way more fast-paced.”
Lawson and Davis will be looked on to convert the intense volleys into points when the games matter.
“They're really involved – I'm excited about them,” Phillips said. “I was nervous coming in. I knew there wasn't too much experience, but they really impressed me when I saw them.”
Setting them up will be junior Vito Barone.
“My setter is most likely gonna be Vito. He didn't play last year, but he's definitely played before, and I'm excited about him,” Phillips said. “All these boys are really excited to learn, so they're really easy to coach. They'll listen to anything I have to say to help them get better.”
Sussex Academy opens its season away against Henlopen South rival Indian River at 4 p.m., Monday, March 24.
Aaron Mushrush joined the sports team in Summer 2023 to help cover the emerging youth athletics scene in the Cape Region. After lettering in soccer and lacrosse at Sussex Tech, he played lacrosse at Division III Eastern University in St. David's, PA. Aaron coached lacrosse at Sussex Tech in 2009 and 2011. Post-collegiately, Mush played in the Eastern Shore Summer Lacrosse League for Blue Bird Tavern and Saltwater Lacrosse. He competed in several tournaments for the Shamrocks Lacrosse Club, which blossomed into the Maryland Lacrosse League (MDLL). Aaron interned at the Coastal Point before becoming assistant director at WMDT-TV 47 ABC in 2017 and eventually assignment editor in 2018.
