Every team has an anchor, the person they rely on. For North High’s boys volleyball team, senior Timothy Lee was that anchor.
As libero, Lee was responsible for leading the team defensively, and diving to save balls to keep points alive.
The libero, a special position on the volleyball team, often serves as the leader of a team’s defense in the back row.
“Since I was playing in the back row, I’m like the backbone of the team,” Lee said. “If we couldn’t receive the ball then it would be a great problem, so I’m there to be the anchor”
Off of the volleyball court, Lee was an All-County tennis player, and a founding member of the North High table tennis team.
The three-sport athlete has lead the varsity volleyball team to three Nassau County semifinals, and was honored this year with an All-Long Island volleyball player distinction.
“I love volleyball because it’s really a team sport,” Lee said. “Unlike tennis or table tennis, you really have to communicate together well and bond together well in order to play well.”’
As the libero, Lee was responsible for bumping the ball following the opposing team’s spike.
Eamon Flood, the North High’s athletic director said Lee was instrumental to the team’s success.
“As back row player in volleyball, he seemed to get to every ball,” Flood said.
As an All-Long Island volleyball player, an All-County tennis player and a founding member of the North High table tennis team, Lee has certainly left his mark on North High Athletics.
Lee said that playing three sports simultaneously in high school allowed him to borrow skills from different sports, helping him improve in all three.
“In tennis you need to be quick, especially at net where you have to volley and the ball’s coming at you really fast, which definitely helped me in all three sports,” Lee said. “In volleyball people spike it at me, and you have to have quick reactions to get it up, and in table tennis the table’s pretty short so you have to be quick there too.”
Lee said that out of everything he experienced as a North High Athlete, he will most miss the connections he made with his teammates, especially those of different backgrounds.
“I’m gonna miss chilling with different people,” Lee said. “In tennis I hangout with certain groups I don’t usually get to hangout with, like the Persians. It’s awesome to learn about their culture.”
Lee even said that being on the teams allowed him to have experience things he never would have had the chance to.
“We’re having a Shabbat dinner so that’s really cool,” Lee said. “It’s fun for me because I never went to one in my life, and also they taught me some random words in Persian which is awesome because usually I don’t interact with them.”
Though Lee graduated from North this past June, he’ll be sure to take his knowledge of Persian with him to the club volleyball team at Cornell University, where he will be studying next year.
