When the Emmaus boys volleyball team entered Zephyr Gymnasium last Thursday, one team would leave the facility as the lone unbeaten team in the league.

It didn’t take long to find the answer as the Zephyrs swept the Green Hornets, leaving themselves as the only EPC team with an unblemished record.

The Zephyrs won 25-21, 25-22, 25-23, defeating Emmaus for the first time since 2013. That streak spanned 12 matches. (One if those losses occurred during the postseason in 2013.)

Head coach George Cowitch has been through all of those matches, and the current crop of Zephyrs were able to end that streak by “doing a lot of good things.”

Those good things included their play at the net as Joseph Herman and Dylan McGinley combined for 39 kills.

“Our attack was really good for us,” said Cowitch. “We were able to put the ball down against a quality opponent.”

Herman finished with a stellar, all-around game, finishing with 23 kills, six digs and one ace, while McGinley had 16 kills, eight digs and two blocks. Middle hitter Alex Khouri was also part of their frontcourt demolition squad, recording five kills, four digs and two aces.

Cowitch said that the “good stuff” they did throughout the match far outweighed the negatives. Their ability to consistently hammer home winners played a big part in the win.

He also said that their service/receive during the match also played a big role.

“That was huge,” he said.

Cowitch said that their service game prevented Emmaus from setting up offensively the way they would have liked. In volleyball parlance, it’s called playing out of system. He said that when a team is out of system, they lose the majority of their options to set up their offense. It basically limits their options.

Conversely, Whitehall took advantage in that area of the game as they were able to get the ball into spots where their frontcourt players could do a lot of damage. Setter Rick Melosky orchestrated that effort, finishing the match with 42 assists. He also had 11 digs, three kills and two blocks.

In the past, it was Emmaus who consistently prevented Whitehall from being able to set up their offense by serving the ball deep and with good pace. But Whitehall flipped the script in their first encounter this season, relying on a strong receiving effort led by Aziz Atiyeh who had 19 digs.

With the game played before an enthusiastic home crowd, their involvement provided a big emotional boost. Cowitch said that with the crowd virtually on top of the court, it makes it a tough place for an opponent, while giving the home team a huge lift.

“That gives you so much energy,” he said.

While the win ended a long drought against their EPC rivals, Cowitch said that they were going to enjoy the victory, but with the realization that it’s a regular season win. Still, he said that they can’t downplay the fact that they swept the Hornets, and they’ll welcome the congratulations from everyone the following day at school, but once that clock hits 3 p.m., it’s back to work. He knows there’s still a lot of work to be done.

“They’re still the defending league and district champs until we knock them off,” Cowitch said.

That mindset was uppermost in their minds once they began last Friday’s practice.

“We have to keep getting better,” said Cowitch.