LYNN — The weather wasn’t stopping boys volleyball on Friday, a day that saw one Lynn team hoist the first annual city championship trophy.

Host Lynn Classical and KIPP took the hardwood for the title game with the Rams winning in straight sets of 25-18, 25-14, and 25-15. 

Although Classical picked up the sweep, KIPP came out early and took a 4-1 lead in the first set. Then, the Rams started to find their groove, rallying six straight points (7-4). 

Both teams exchanged blows, tying things up, 10-10, but that was before Classical started finding its outside hitters.

The Rams started to increase the pressure, closing the game on a 15-8 run. From there, they didn’t look back and fed off the momentum from their bench – and the home crowd.

“One thing we figured out is that we can terminate the ball well. If we’re staying in our system and making the other team defend us, we’re going to be a problem,” said Classical coach Chris LeBlanc. “I was so proud of how hard this team worked. There was no one quitting. On every point, everyone was engaged.” 

Outside hitter Viet Tran showed his athleticism, skying high and delivering powerful spikes into the Panthers’ end. 

But as LeBlanc said, it was “a total team effort.” 

“I don’t think, tonight, we had one superstar. Every single player did something that contributed to the win,” he said. “Whether it was our libero picking up balls in serve receive, whether it was our outside terminating balls, our setter Kenzel (Lantano) played really well, too.”

For coach Jacob Roman and his Panthers, he believed his side could have played better. 

“I think our boys could have played way better,” he said. “Last night (Thursday), they showed how they could play. Tonight, I felt they weren’t ready.”

Friday marked KIPP’s third straight match, and it seemed as though fatigue was catching up with the Panthers toward the later stages of sets. 

“What killed us was this was our third straight game. Back-to-back-to-back games are tough,” Roman said. “Injuries are also hurting us. Our middle blocker has a shoulder injury, our outside has a shoulder and knee issue, and our backline is hurting.” 

Classical won the second set, 25-14, and then clinched the championship with an ace from Leonardo Cruz Noguero to end the third set, 25-15.  

“It was big for these guys. They came out last year in our first year and started 0-4 and played the rest of the year tough,” LeBlanc said. “To come out yesterday and today and play as well as we played was great. I had no idea what we were going to look like coming into last night.” 

Lynn Classical sophomore libero Long Pham was awarded Most Valuable Player of the tournament. 

“Our offense is going to be a challenge for other teams to deal with. If we can run our offense the way we want to run it and we want to run at our tempo and pace, I think it’ll be tough on other teams,” LeBlanc said.

Despite the loss, Roman was proud that “we made it here.”

“We battled it out yesterday. I’m just happy we got here. There’s a lot more to come from us,” Roman said. “Coming back from a 2-0 deficit yesterday was something our team has never done before… Usually, once we lose two, it’s hard for the team to come back.”

For LeBlanc and the Rams, it’s a busy week ahead. 

“I’m excited. We’re about to be in the heart of the GBL (Greater Boston League) next week. We have Everett and Malden next week and then we have Pioneer,” LeBlanc said. “Pioneer never wants to lose to us since they’re right down the street. Malden always puts a good team on the floor and Everett already has a couple of wins under its belt. It’s not going to be easy, but I’m excited to see where the season takes us.”