Melissa Rigo: State Volleyball Player of the Year

Melissa Rigo gets emotional just talking about her state girls volleyball championship. Her eyes mist up and her voice cracks.

It’s understandable when you consider how close the senior came the previous three seasons – only to come up short. Three straight trips to the state tournament ended with losses. Crushing losses.

“We made it to the state semifinals my freshman year,” Rigo said. “Sophomore year same thing. Junior year same thing.” 

The 5-foot-10 Rigo, a middle hitter who signed last month with Stony Brook University, took a greater leadership role this fall and raised her game. The result a 23-2 season capped by a state Class B crown for the Knights.

“The senior group was a lot closer,” said Rigo, one of five senior starters. “We all hung out together and understood each other.”

One month after delivering a coveted championship, Rigo earned high praise of her own. She was named Gatorade New York State Volleyball Player of the Year. 

“That was a shock to me,” said Rigo, who found out while in class on Wednesday. “My mom texted me. I wrote back, ‘You’re kidding.’”

Rigo finished the season with 314 digs, 355 kills, 45 blocks and 37 service aces. Rigo  and was chosen Tournament MVP. She is also Newsday’s Long Island Player of the Year and a two-time First Team All-State selection. 

She totaled 1,074 kills, 1,001 digs, 193 aces and hit .310 over her four-year varsity career. She chose Stony Brook over Binghamton, Colgate, Marist and Quinnipiac.

But her crowning achievement came down to attitude. 

“The past three years we came out nervous,” Rigo said of the state tournament. “We came out and weren’t nervous this year. We were right on target. Right then and there I knew.”

The weekend ended at the Glen Falls Civic Center in tears of joy. 

“When you walk out and see the arena for the last time,” Rigo paused to compose herself, “then you know it’s over.”

Mission accomplished.