The Cranston East boys volleyball team entered the spring season with high expectations after reaching the Division I semifinals last year and returning much of the same core.

The Bolts entered the week with a 3-3 league record, good for fifth place in the division. The team had a big matchup against first-place, undefeated North Kingstown last week and fell in a competitive 3-1 decision. East was the first team to take a game from the Skippers this year.

“We’re getting better day by day. We’re a very athletic team trying to find ourselves, trying to find what our strengths are. We started slow but were able to take a set from (NK) which no one has been able to do. That’s a confidence booster for us,” said East coach Jhamal Diggs.

Leading East so far have been Caleb Xum, Dennis Dixon and Charles Pincince. Xum has emerged as one of the elite setters in the state while Pincince remains one of the most dominant outside hitters in DI as well.

“They’ve been together for a few years now. Caleb and Dennis are a really good combination, work well together. Caleb and Charles, too. Caleb works hard at his position and takes it to heart. He works hard to build that connection with our hitters and now they have a great connection and we need them to execute that to the best of their ability,” said Diggs.

Although the Bolts’ 3-3 record is modest on paper, no team other than North Kingstown is undefeated in the division. Bishop Hendricken won four of its first five, while La Salle and Chariho sat at 3-2. Newcomer Cranston West along with East Providence have also been successful with 3-3 records.

Point being, the DI playoff race figures to be the fiercest ever.

“Anyone can beat anyone on any given night. You need to come ready, you need to come prepared. It doesn’t matter who your opponent is. Come ready to play,” said Diggs on the DI field.

As the Bolts enter the meat of their regular season schedule, Diggs is looking for his players to believe in themselves and trust their abilities as they look to make another deep run.

“On the court, I’d pick us any day, any night, against anyone. I think that we have to look within ourselves and believe, be confident within ourselves,” said Diggs. “That’s what we need to focus on. We need to be more confident.”