St. Paul girls volleyball has been on the cusp of a state tournament berth for the past three seasons.
Each time, the Falcons came up just short, posting records of 7-13, 7-12 and 7-13 in 2015, 2016 and 2017.
St. Paul hadn’t reached the state tournament since 2009, when it qualified for Class S as a No. 20 seed with an 8-10 record. After 2009, the Falcon record was: 6-12, 6-12, 4-14, 3-17, 3-15, 7-13, 7-12 and 7-13.
On Oct. 5th inside the friendly confines of the gym on Maltby Street, St. Paul rallied from an 0-2 deficit to stun Torrington 3-2. It was the eighth win of the season for the Falcons, who clinched their first state tournament berth since 2009.
St. Paul hasn’t just surpassed the win total it had for the last three seasons. The Falcons have slammed it with a current record of 10-4. St. Paul’s 10 wins put it eighth in the Class S standings.
Devin Pecevich, a graduate of Bristol Central, is the first-year head coach of the Falcons. While a member of the Ram football team, Pecevich hauled in 31 passes in 2007, which still ranks him sixth in program history. More recently, Pecevich has coached with The Bristol Boys and Girls Club Crush Volleyball program.
Juniors Grace Carabetta, Alexis Carabetta and Olivia Genovese lead the way for St. Paul. Sophomore Greta Panke, junior Kelsi Blatchley and Morgan Kolb have also had some big performances for the Falcons.