During much of the last three sets, if you closed your eyes for a moment, you could almost forget you were in Lexington.

Against an upper-tier Minutemen group riding a 10-game win streak at the end of April, the Milford boys volleyball team transformed the small gym into a home away from home. The junior varsity squad’s booming cheers from the bleachers ignited the bench, who echoed every holler in a regular season matchup with a state quarterfinal feel. And on the court, super-charged junior outside hitter Gus Da Silva traded hits with Lexington’s Ale Luciani in a five-set thriller Milford lost by just two points.

Lexington ranks at No. 5 in the latest Div. 1 power rankings, with the state tournament almost a week away. It’s drawn praise as the leading candidate to break up the Bay State Conference’s grip on the Final Four.

The Scarlet Hawks, with Da Silva as their only returning starter from a trip to the state semifinals last year, rank No. 22.

“That game really showed us how good we are defensively and how good we can be,” Da Silva said. “The hype-ness, especially from our JV team and freshman team, if it wasn’t for them, I think we would’ve struggled a lot. They really boosted us as a team and our energy just skyrocketed. I think that’s what really pushed us that game. It was a good game. It felt like a home game, I can’t lie.”

Milford has a history of tenacity in numbers, wearing hearts on sleeves and producing a storm of energy that’s hard for opponents to bottle up. Last year’s senior-laden group, led by stars Alex Guerra and Arthur Gomes, showed a strong, team-wide friendship at the heart of it every day with Da Silva — a culture the junior focuses on maintaining this year.

To Scarlet Hawks head coach Andrew Mainini, that’s Da Silva’s superpower, outside of his talents as one of the state’s better outside hitters. And when Milford competes with Lexington, or beats a Cambridge (ranked No. 6) in five sets, or leads sets against Div. 1 and Div. 2 powerhouses Newton North and Agawam, that unity shines bright.

“I think off of the court, he is someone that the entire team likes, and he makes them laugh, and he brings the team together socially,” Mainini said. “The way he interacts with his teammates is really positive, and that has really brought the team — a pretty inexperienced team that was very new to each other — he has really brought the team together. And when we play defense, we often look like a well-oiled machine with a lot of chemistry. And I think that is partially because Gus has kind of united everyone as friends.”

“I want to be like a team that has a lot of chemistry and enjoys playing with each other, no hatred,” Da Silva added. “You know, that’s my focus. … We’re always hanging out. We’re always eating lunch (together). After practices or games, we’re always like together, you know, bonding as a team. So, that’s our primary goal, is just being together. When we’re at our low, we stay together, and when we’re achieving, everyone’s supporting each other.”

There’s a lot to Da Silva’s game that makes him a player to watch. Newton North and Lexington struggled at times to disrupt his hitting, which Mainini says comes from a dynamic swing that produces at the toughest of angles. The team is strong with its serve-receive, of which Da Silva is one of its best at. He’s been a standout passer.

When asked of those contributions when Milford is at its best, Da Silva points to the team. But when the Scarlet Hawks struggle, which has come in waves in an 11-8 record, the junior feels responsible for it.

“I have to take, like, the blame for it,” Da Silva said. “Everyone looks up to me, so I have to be a great role model to everyone. And sometimes I don’t do that. But I’m trying to keep myself at a very high standard for the most part.”

Milford, which has high expectations for what it can do in the state tournament despite its ranking, has shown more positives than negatives.

An upset loss to Taunton to share the new Hockomock League title with it was something Mainini felt Da Silva took pretty harshly. A 3-0 loss to Acton-Boxboro earlier in the week was frustrating, too. But in the first two sets, Milford was seemingly full control.

Against Newton North, which eventually lost top outside hitter Simon Vardeh to injury late in the third set, Milford led or competed well into at least the middle of all four sets in a 3-1 loss. Agawam is Div. 2’s leading title favorite, and Milford led in sets against it as well. The five-set win over Cambridge was a match Da Silva especially thrived in.

“I think when we play our best,” Mainini said. “it’s because (Da Silva) is, you know, bringing the team together and pushing them forward.”

Consistency is the key, and Da Silva has worked hard on his leadership to limit the low moments. Da Silva admits the pressure he feels with jumping from a role player last year to a central leader this year, a pressure that’s been both enjoyable and difficult. But he’s taking it in stride, and is focused on guiding the Scarlet Hawks as they look to improve their close-outs to sets.

“We’re really playing well until that closing moment (in the losses),” he said. “We just need to sense a little bit of blood, and athletes close the game every time. … Really it’s just working harder every day.”

Passion for the sport comes almost naturally for Da Silva, who dropped other sports to focus on volleyball and work as a barber. He plays for Smash volleyball in the offseason, and has made friendships and improved there, too.

“(Volleyball) means a lot (to me),” Da Silva said. “It’s like, my safe space, in a way. It brings me closer to my friends. It’s like, really calming and it’s just peaceful, you know?”

With those friends, he’s looking forward to making some noise in the state tournament. The whole team — bolstered by junior Diego Inacio-Santos, sophomore Sam Abreu and a well-balanced defense — is too.

“We’re ready, and we’re excited to potentially be the underdog who gets a couple upsets in the tournament,” Mainini said. “We know that we are more talented than a (22) seed.”