NORTH QUINCY – Andover boys volleyball head coach EJ Perry used the memory of last year’s Div. 1 first-round state tournament loss as a point of motivation for his team heading into this year’s playoff run.

Determination ran a bit deeper than that, though, for upperclassmen to fuel a 3-0 (25-23, 25-20, 25-21) victory over No. 16 North Quincy on Friday for the 17-seeded Golden Warriors’ first state tournament win since 2017.

They await the winner of Saturday’s No. 1 Needham versus No. 32 Weymouth matchup in the second round.

“We’ve been waiting all these years, we’ve been fighting the past four years we’ve been in the tournament,” said senior star setter Marco Gomez-Cabo. “We just haven’t been able to get past that first win. So I think this win was just kind of a big step forward for the program, kind of a big validation for what we’ve been working on all these years. Just kind of knowing what we’re working for, we’re finally doing it.”

Gomez-Cabo (34 assists, two aces) led the way, spreading the wealth for Andover (15-7) by connecting with four different players for eight kills. His serving was impactful alongside senior Tristan Berty’s (two aces), as the two combined for signature points in clutch times.

Such high-stakes execution was needed in different moments of each set against Cameron Johnston (16 kills) and a gritty Raiders (11-10) group, and the Golden Warriors delivered.

Despite leading 23-17 in the first set as Teddy Addesa (eight kills) cooked early, North Quincy’s 5-0 run put Andover to the test. But a kill from senior Gavin Lohan (eight kills) put it at game-point for the eventual 25-23 win.

The Raiders scorched the start of the second set with a 7-1 lead, but the Golden Warriors posted five runs of at least three straight points from there to quickly catch up and take over a 25-20 frame. And after side-out volleyball ruled the start of the third set, junior Carter Yee fueled a 10-2 run to give Andover the separation it needed to stave off North Quincy’s gritty response.

“With the opponents we’ve played, we’ve had a lot of games like that where we’ve had to come back or the other team’s clawed back and won a set,” said Gomez-Cabo. “So I think we’ve really learned our lesson, built up a lot of resiliency. … That was kind of the big thing coming in.”

“(The win) is really a tribute to (assistant Dan Young), the seniors and the captains, so I’m very happy,” Perry added. “Our motto going forward is, ‘Shock the world but not ourselves.’ We think we can play with anybody.”

North Quincy got quality moments from three different setters, as Jerry Chen (20 assists), Anderson Chen (six assists) and freshman Ryan Thong (five assists) were all called upon. Ben Walinjom had five kills and five blocks, and Anthony Chiu was second on the team with six kills.

Andover simply showed more depth and execution, though, with senior libero Noah Chantaboun playing well on defense, and senior Griffin Connell (eight kills) taking over a couple stretches in the second and third sets.

“I think it’s amazing having so many guys on the net I can rely on,” Gomez-Cabo said. “It’s a huge bonus for me.”

The senior now has 2,131 career assists and has a chance to get the eight he needs to break the program’s all-time record.