Post publication update:
North Reading (No. 8) falls to Weston (No. 9) 3-0 in Div. 3 state tournament round of 16. (Nov. 4)
North Reading defeats Burncoat (No. 25) 3-1 in first round (Nov. 1)
To view the full bracket, tap here.
Published October 30, 2025
Hornet volleyball sets for states, finishes regular season at 16-2
By STEPHEN MARTELLUCCI
NORTH READING — In their final match of the regular season last Friday, the North Reading High volleyball team edged Masconomet, 3-2, at home.
With that non-league victory, the Hornets ended up at 16-2 overall. The Chieftains, who are one division higher (Div. 2) than the Hornets, ended up at 12-8.
Masco won the first set, 25-22, but the Hornets won by that same score in the second set. The Chieftains then won the third set, 25-15, as the Hornets won the final two sets, 25-20, and 15-4 to pull out the win.
“It was a long match, with the exception of the final set, where we served very well,” said Hornets head coach Mike Milone. “This match could have went either way and this is the type of match the kids really needed heading into the tournament.”
Willow Koepke led the Hornets in service aces (seven) and assists (20). Sydney Scholz had 10 kills while Emery Cordero had a team-high 11 digs.
Scholz also had a pair of blocks.
In the final Cape Ann League match for the team, the Hornets steamrolled host Triton, 3-0, up in Byfield on Oct. 23.
North Reading swept the season series over the Vikings as they won, 3-0, back on Sept. 29.
The Hornets won the three sets, 25-8, 25-15 and 25-22.
“We played really well and it gave us a chance to give the reserves some playing time,” recalled Milone.
With that win, the Hornets finished at 13-2 in the league as they came in second place in the CAL Kinney Division to Lynnfield.
Koepke and Ella Maier each led the team in aces with seven. Koepke, a junior, had 24 assists as well. Scholz had 10 kills while Cordero led the team in digs with 11.
On Tuesday, the brackets came out for the Division 3 state tournament and the Hornets received the 8th seed.
They will play the winner of the Burncoat-Diman Tech match on Oct. 30 in the first round sometime this weekend (date and time unknown as of press time).
Burncoat (15-3) is the 25th seed while Diman (10-8) is the 40th seed.