NORTH SMITHFIELD – Natasha Jenkins knew the exact number without thinking.
The number of years since North Smithfield girls volleyball won a title is on everyone’s mind this season. Ending a 39-year title drought is the only mission for this group, and an undefeated fall might come with the banner.
One regular-season game remains – at Toll Gate on Friday – before the top-ranked Northmen (15-0) start their playoff journey. North Smithfield toppled Lincoln 3-1 (25-22, 25-14, 21-25, 25-19) for the second time this season. The Oct. 21 triumph should lock the Northmen into the top seed for the Division II tourney, which starts with preliminary games on Nov. 2.
“I think it would mean so much, and especially to our seniors,” Jenkins said. “We love them so much, and they put in so much work. We've all grown with them, since freshman year. To get them a win for their senior year, and obviously for us, but to get them a win is really an achievement. And to get another year on the banner is something really cool.”
Realignment pushed last year’s top four teams up this season, and only Cranston East dropped down. It left a power vacuum that North Smithfield filled perfectly, and it can maintain with just two seniors on this year’s roster. Club play, team cohesion and a desire to stop the streak has turned North Smithfield into a machine.
“We all practice together, so I think that really helps us build a strong connection with each other,” senior Sophia Majeau said. “And these juniors are just such an amazing class, and me and Grace [DeStefanis] just blend so well with them. I think it's amazing.”
The Northmen rolled from a first-set win into a dominant second frame. They broke out to a 17-10 lead against the league’s second-ranked team before cruising to the finish on Audrey Glode’s kill. The junior finished with a team-high 14 kills and had the hosts looking at a sweep up 11-4 in the third set.
Lincoln (12-3) showed why a potential rematch at Rhode Island College would be welcomed. It didn’t settle for an early bus ride home and battled back behind seven kills and 10 blocks from Brielle Lambert.
“I think we'll probably end up seeing them in the championship if we hopefully make it that far,” Jenkins said. “I think it'll be a really good challenge. I think no matter when we’re playing them it’s such a fun game, because they're all so skilled.”
The fourth stanza was never really in doubt. The gas was back to the floor for North Smithfield with an undefeated regular season within reach. The Northmen haven’t played Toll Gate yet this season, the likely third seed in the division. The Titans were promoted after winning the Division IV championship last year.
“I think we just realized we actually have to go out and we have to play hard,” Majeau said. “This is a big game for us. This determines who's going to be first. Our coach just really spoke that into us, and I think we just did an amazing job executing it.”
The Rhode Island Interscholastic League removed that division this year, opting for three leagues, and the Warwick school jumped right to D-II. It can play spoiler on Friday night, but the rest of the division might still be chasing the Northmen when the games matter most.
“We were just preparing every single day,” Jenkins said. “Every game leading up to this, we were kind of treating it as a practice looking forward to this game. We know that Lincoln is number two, so they're our toughest competitor, and they have really strong players. We just had to step it up for this one.”
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: North Smithfield girls volleyball closes in on ending 39-year drought