Forest Hills Girls Volleyball Drops Nailbiter To Van Buren

In a thrilling three-game match at the Forest Hills High School gym Tuesday afternoon, the Van Buren Vee Bees (3-1) edged the Rangers (4-1), two games to one after a thrilling third game, complete with multiple comebacks from the home squad. The final line had Van Buren topping Forest Hills 25-17, 13-25,  and finally 26-24.

After a rough first game, Forest Hills bounced back to win the second, only to see the third game slip away three times, ultimately finishing 26-24 in favor of Martin Van Buren High School.

The Hero: Van Buren's Madhuri Sharma had six service points and six kills, along with three aces, in a winning effort. Her ability to stifle several Forest Hills rallies is what made the difference in the long run.

Honorable mention goes to Forest Hills' Tatiana Moore, who took advantage of her serve and pushed the Rangers from down six points into a 24-24 tie in the third game of the match. Her play even garnered praise from Van Buren head coach Bill Lalin.

"It took a lot of guts for her to serve the way she did when our team had 24," Lalin said.

The Turning Point: In the course of one of the most exciting matches either coach could remember, there were dozens of small momentum shifts in the course of the afternoon. While both teams were jockeying for advantage the entire final game, the Vee Bees were the group who looked most in control from the start, and always forced the Rangers to keep coming back. In the end, Forest Hills was one rally short.

The Quote: Both coaches were overwhelmed by the back and forth nature of the game — Lalin so much so that he walked over to the Forest Hills team huddle afterwards and professed his admiration for the Rangers themselves.

"I'm going to be honest with you, you're still the best team in this division," Lalin said to a stunned Forest Hills squad. "It's as simple as that. I believe that. I believe that."

The Bottom Line: What happened at the Forest Hills gym on Oct. 5 was nothing short of remarkable. Two talented teams came together and put on a show that forced even two other teams within the division to stop and marvel.

In the end, the Rangers seemed to be playing too much on their heels to complete what would have been a stunning comeback.

Key Stat: 11/1/2010, the date of the next meeting between Martin Van Buren and Forest Hills. After the show both teams put on in the Forest Hills gym on Tuesday, the rematch will be one to wait for.

Who's next? Forest Hills vs. Hillcrest at home, Friday, 4:30p.m.

PSAL Queens A8 Girls Volleyball

TEAMS……………........G1………G2..........G3 -- F

Forest Hills…………….17……….25............24 -- 1

Van Buren.........…....25……...13............26 -- 2