'I think I did my part.' Natick volleyball coach Peter Suxho honored for 500 victories
NATICK – The delayed ceremony made the secret a little harder to keep. But Peter Suxho had no idea.
The longtime Natick volleyball coach shook his head when public address announcer Peter Mundy began reeling off his achievements: 13 conference titles; seven sectional championships; four state finals; one state crown.
Mundy saved the best for last: Suxho’s 500th victory, earned last week in a victory over St. John’s of Shrewsbury. Athletic director Tim Collins presented Suxho with a plaque on Thursday afternoon before the Redhawks faced Weymouth.
“I didn’t know,” Suxho admitted after Natick required less than an hour to sweep the Wildcats. “It was a surprise.”
“We kept the surprise,” said senior captain Harrison Landry. “We wanted to do it during the girls season.”
Suxho, who has coached the Natick boys and girls teams since 2005, was approaching the milestone in the fall but ruptured an Achilles tendon and was unable to serve as head coach for much of the season. The carryover lasted almost through April, but the Redhawks quickly reached the magic number due to their ability to pile up victories.
Natick’s win Tuesday knocked Newton North from the ranks of the undefeated and was just the start of a big week. North was No. 1 in the state according to Mass High School Volleyball.
But No. 500 was special. And after Thursday’s 25-8, 25-15, 25-9 victory over Weymouth, many alumni surrounded Suxho to offer congratulations and later joined him at a celebratory dinner at Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza near Route 9 in Natick.
“It means a lot to me,” he said. “In my job, it’s not just coaching. It’s about parents. I think parents are very helpful. If they are against you, you’re in trouble. If they love you, they are a big support. I’ve been lucky. It’s complex.
“And besides that, you have to work hard and be smart. So I think I did my part.”
After winning both girls and boys state championships at Millis High in 2003, Suxho took over both teams at Natick two years later. His best team was the 2007 squad that won the Bay State Conference title with a 14-0 record before defeating Newton North at Hudson High to complete a 22-1 season.
The then Redmen defeated St. John’s Prep in the state semifinals, 3-0, one year after falling to Prep, 3-2, in the title match.
This year’s team is 7-1 and is looking to head back to the Division 1 championship match for the first time since 2019. Junior Branch Barnes is one of five captains and said Suxho has helped his career “significantly.
“He was the one who put me at the setter (position) in the first place. It was his decision my freshman year. That sent me on a path to become so much better of a player than I am.”
Senior captain Harrison Landry said Suxho also helped him grow his career.
“I’ve been playing for him for four years now,” Landry said. “Sometimes I go back and watch my film from freshman year and I like to see how much I’ve improved. He helped with a lot of that.”
Natick defeats No. 1 and previously unbeaten Newton North
While Suxho’s win over St. John’s of Shrewsbury was significant, win No. 501 held its own importance.
The 3-1 win at Newton North handed the Tigers (now 6-1) their first loss since falling to Needham in last year’s Division 1 final. Natick is currently ranked No. 6 but should move up after No. 3 Milford, which also entered the week undefeated, lost to No. 2 Needham (Wednesday) and BC High (Thursday).
“It’s huge,” Barnes said of the win over North. “It’s awesome to beat a team that’s so talented. But we know that we have a lot of season ahead of us and it doesn’t mean anything if we don’t continue to play that well.”
“It really shows other teams that we are title contenders,” Landry added. “Not a lot of people had us in the picture at the time.”
Suxho, of course, had the final word on that victory. Thursday was his night after all.
“It was a good test for us,” he said. “It means we’re able to beat good teams. They make us better. We know we’re headed in the right direction.”
Tim Dumas is a multimedia journalist for the Daily News. He can be reached attdumas@wickedlocal.com. Follow him on Twitter @TimDumas.
This article originally appeared on MetroWest Daily News: Natick honors coach Peter Suxho with plaque for 500 volleyball wins
