Every time Cardinal Gibbons scored a point Tuesday, senior Austin Belt looked around, trying to find friend and teammate Nick Williams.
He wasn't there.
Where he was: in a hospital bed at North Broward Medical Center, responsive but not fully conscious -- but still getting play-by-play of his team's state first-round play-in match against Archbishop McCarthy from team manager Keri Fox, who was listening to the action by phone.
And when everything ended?
''He opened his eyes,'' said his mother, Donna Pappas, who watched from the stands, a bouquet of flowers in hand.
``I know he knows.''
What Williams -- a 16-year-old junior star for the Chiefs, who sustained life-threatening injuries in a one-car accident early Sunday morning -- knows: His team is going to state one more time, after the Chiefs (27-1) rallied to beat the Mavericks 24-26, 25-19, 25-19, 25-22.
''We did it for Nick,'' said senior John T. Downs, one of several players forced to fill the void left by their powerful outside hitter. ``That's all that matters.
``He was on the court with us the whole game.''
That was, in part, because of Belt, who wore Williams' No. 2 jersey under his own.
But that wasn't the only hint of No. 2 in the Cardinal Gibbons gym. Not even close.
BANNERS, SHIRTS
Everything from cards to banners to jerseys and T-shirts bearing Williams' No. 2 flooded the stands, as did shirts bearing the phrase, ``We love Nick.''
And when the game was over, Pappas and a few fans and friends wore T-shirts with Williams' picture on front.
Printed on the back: ``This win is for Nick.''
But it almost wasn't at all.
With Williams noticeably absent from the court, the Mavericks (19-9) quickly took advantage.
They jumped ahead 14-9, and then fought off a Cardinal Gibbons rally to grab the first game.
They even built a 17-14 lead in the second, looking a bit sharper than the seemingly distracted Chiefs. But Cardinal Gibbons grabbed 11 of the last 13 points to avoid trailing 2-0, and then never relented.
''Relentless'' -- just like the word printed on a card adorning Williams' No. 2.
''With the tragedy,'' Belt said, ``it helped us come together as a team and a family.''
That family will remain close off the court, as Belt -- who describes Williams as a brother -- and some other teammates were preparing to head to the hospital to visit their fallen friend.
But not before they pulled out that almost improbable win.
COACH'S ORDERS
Just like coach Marcy Meyer told them to.
``I told the boys today, `Take this day, this night, this match, and take every second out of it. Embrace it. It's something you'll remember your whole life. Because not many people get an opportunity to be involved in something this big.'
'It's bigger than them. It's bigger than the game of volleyball. And to be able to step up for your friend [and] teammate like that, that's huge. You may never get an opportunity like that again.' ''
But they will Friday at state -- something an improving Williams might even know.
