By Michael Letendre
BRISTOL – The winning streak for the Bristol Eastern volleyball team against Bristol Central, now at 53 straight victories by the Lancers, started off quietly in 1995.
But before getting to that point in history, Central did very well against Eastern from 1992-94.
The Rams kept Eastern out of the state tournament picture in 1994 via a 3-2 victory that was epic in proportion.
That last Central win saw the Rams come back from a 1-0 deficit to post a three-games-to-two triumph over Eastern on November 3.
And after the Bristol Eastern volleyball program won the Class L championship in 1991, under the guidance of head coach Gail McMahon (Ericson), Central fared very well against the Lancers over the following six matches off that title victory.
All but two of the six showdowns went the full five sets while the other two were four-set battles with either program in position to win the match.
If you went to school at Bristol Eastern during this period, most students – not knowing the history of the city series battles – thought the BC/BE volleyball showdowns were always back and forth affairs.
That was hardly the case in the early-to-mid 1990s.
In a September 28, 1992 battle against the Rams, Eastern grabbed the first two sets against Central (15-13, 15-10), dropped the next two (6-15, 9-15) which required the squads to play a winner-take-all fifth game.
But Eastern came away from the event a 15-8 winner, taking the match 3-2 – winning its 12th straight contest against Central.
However, that all quickly changed for the Rams.
Central took four of the next five matches as the Rams looked poised, sharp and played extremely well.
On November 4, 1992, Central broke its losing streak against Eastern, defeating the defending Class L champs by a 3-1 final (15-8, 15-7, 14-16, and 15-12).
It was the first win by the Rams over Eastern since 1986.
The victory moved the Rams to 10-7 overall while Eastern fell to 9-8.
Both teams were 7-7 in CCC South confrontations.
Lisa Korytkowski and Traci Dufour helped Central finally score a win over Eastern while Sarah Killiany, Angela Bookas, Melissa MacDonald and Gayle Zahnke all contributed over the outstanding effort.
Melissa Fortin, Jessica Byrnes, and Melanie Chapdelaine played well for Eastern.
It was a huge victory for Central coach Gary Fleming as his squads had very little success against the Lancers over the years.
By 1993, Central was an even stronger unit and battled Eastern in two five-set wars – the first sweep against the Lancers since 1984.
Eastern returned only Jessica Byrnes – who ended up playing basketball collegiately during her freshman season at the University of New Haven – from the 1991 championship team but the Lancers still pushed the Rams to the brink.
The first match took place on October 12 from the Charles C. Marsh Gymnasium as Central pulled out a 15-10, 11-15, 15-2, 13-15, and 15-13 win over Eastern.
Kristen Mullin played well at the net and from the service line while Central teammates Jaime Serapilia, Zahnke, and Bookas led the charge for the home team.
April Yetke, Beth Ponte, and Byrnes played well but the Lancers just fell short.
And then, the Rams repeated the feat at the Thomas M. Monahan Gymnasium on November 3 with another five-set thriller (18-20, 15-2, 15-11, 11-15, and 15-11) as Central defeated Eastern for the third straight time over a rare regular season sweep.
It was another nip-and-tuck affair with Eastern having to go for twenty first period points to earn a 1-0 edge in the match.
However, Central pulled out all the stops late.
Bookas added nine kills over the winning effort while Mullin, Serapilia, and Zahnke had another strong showing against their crosstown rival.
Byrnes played well over her final home match with 18 kills.
That Central team had a heck of a season, going 15-5 overall and ranked ninth in the Class L tournament fray.
The Rams earned a first round bye, defeated Westhill, 3-0, on November 10 before falling to Glastonbury, 3-1, that closed out their season two days later.
And then in 1993, it was one of those rare times Central’s volleyball squad had a better ledger than the Lancers did (12-6).
Eastern finally got back to the pay window on October 7, 1994 as the Lancers earned a 3-1 set win over Central via scores of 15-7, 15-6, 8-15, and 15-9 – it’s first victory over the Rams since 1992.
Ponte led the charge with 16 service points while Shelby Fabrizio and Kelly Pomerenke also played well – moving the Lancers to 5-5 overall.
Central fell to 6-3 in the loss.
And to end Eastern’s season early in 1994, it was another five game war on November 3 the Lancers absolutely needed to get into the postseason.
Eastern blasted Central in the first set 15-3, fell in the second 17-15, and took the third game 15-11 to put the Rams on the brink – trailing 2-1.
But Central ended the fourth set with a 15-9 victory before finishing the night with a 15-11 fifth and final game win as Eastern was denied a postseason spot for the first time since 1985.
Mullin had 19 service points, nine kills, and 12 aces while Danielle Drury added a slick eight aces in the win.
Eastern’s Gera Birdsey added 25 points and several aces over the losing effort.
Both the Eastern teams in 1985 and 1994 ended the year at 8-10 – both one win away from a .500 record and playoff qualification.
However, in the next part of this historic rivalry, Central just couldn’t figure out Eastern in 1995 – a streak of misfortune that lasted over the last 53 matches and into 2021.
