Spartans defeat Islanders in nonleague volleyball contest

Mercer Island head coach Samantha Marziello is in her first season leading the program.

By Shaun Scott • September 12, 2018 10:15 pm
Mercer Island volleyball players Anika Iverson, left, and Quinn Casey, right, leap into the air against the Skyline Spartans in a non-league contest on Sept. 12 on Mercer Island. Skyline defeated Mercer Island 3-1 in the matchup. Photo courtesy of Patrick Krohn/Patrick Krohn Photography
Mercer Island volleyball players Anika Iverson, left, and Quinn Casey, right, leap into the air against the Skyline Spartans in a non-league contest on Sept. 12 on Mercer Island. Skyline defeated Mercer Island 3-1 in the matchup. Photo courtesy of Patrick Krohn/Patrick Krohn Photography

The Mercer Island Islanders displayed their potential in the season opener on the volleyball court.

Skyline registered a 3-1 (25-22, 19-25, 25-18, 25-21) victory against Mercer Island in a nonleague volleyball matchup on Sept. 12 at Mercer Island High School. Skyline improved its overall record to 2-2 with the win while Mercer Island dropped to 0-1.

Mercer Island head coach Samantha Marziello wasn’t deterred despite the loss in the season opener against Skyline.

“The goal for the team is to win state (title). I think that should be the goal for every team. We have a lot of work to do. We have a young team and we have a lot of new players playing next to each other. I have a lot of hope for us going forward and have seen improvement every single day,” Marziello said.

Junior Tess Fisk dominated the action in the first two games for the Islanders. Fisk’s timely kills kept Skyline off balance throughout the match.

“Tess is a wonderful all-around player for us. She plays the front and back row really well,” Marziello said of Fisk.

Marziello, who is in her first season leading the Islanders volleyball program, currently works full time as a senior financial analyst at Nordstrom.

“I had never coached high school before. I did a lot of skill coaching for club teams on the East Coast. I also did some skill coaching at Stockton University (Division-III school) in New Jersey. Coaching is my passion,” Marziello said.

When Marziello saw the opening coaching position leading the Islanders volleyball program earlier this year, she didn’t hesitate to apply for it.

“I was very familiar with the community. I was familiar with the competition and the achievement level. It is really fun to coach girls who want to get better and achieve great things,” Marziello said. “One of my coaching pillars is consistent excellence and a desire to succeed. I feel these girls really embody that.”

Skyline senior outside hitter Katie Biscocho and junior Lauren Parker had two kills apiece down the stretch, scoring four of the Spartans’ final five points in the fourth and final set of the match. Skyline head coach Callie Wesson said her team looks completely different from what it did during the 2017 season.

“We graduated 10 players last year. Right now we are just kind of trying to find roles for everyone to fit in. Everyone is trying to find their niche. This is our fourth game. We’re still mixing up the lineups and trying to figure out what is gelling,” Wesson said.