Central Bucks West and Neshaminy advanced to Saturday’s PIAA Class AAA quarterfinal round with wins on Wednesday night.
#1-1 CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 3, #3-4 CUMBERLAND VALLEY 0 (25-20, 25-15, 25-18)
The Bucks swept Cumberland Valley in an opening round state playoff game, and the list of contributors was a lengthy one. The Bucks, it seems, have picked exactly the right time to find their stride.
“Oh my gosh, the last two weeks of the regular season were really rough,” senior Joel Klapper said. “We were winning matches, but they were easy, and we should have won them by more.
“But lately, in these district playoff games, especially tonight, players like Keith (Saunders) and Jackson (Cox) and Jeff (Strasburg) defensively – everyone has been playing well. Everyone on offense has been hitting their hot spots, which is perfect going into states with everyone on fire.”
Klapper contributed eight kills to a balanced attack that included 11 kills, two blocks and one ace from Christian Rupert. Jackson Cox had six kills while Ryan Alu (six digs, one ace) and Matt Hennigan (five digs, two blocks) led the Bucks defensively. Hennigan also had 31 assists and one ace. Keith Saunders added two blocks.
“Everybody is stepping up,” coach Todd Miller said. “They’re playing solid together. When one guy is faltering a little bit, other guys step up and play the way that picks up the pace, fills the gaps.”
The Eagles kept things interesting for a while, opening up an 11-7 lead in the opening set and prompting Miller to call a quick timeout. The Bucks regrouped to go on top 14-13 after a Rupert kill and led 20-15 after an Eagles’ miscue. The Bucks went on to win 25-20, using a Hennigan dump for set point.
“Coming out, we knew it was the first game of states, and we know it’s always going to be a good match, and it’s going to be aggressive,” Klapper said. “We didn’t know too much about this team, so that was another tricky part.
“We had to come out with the same intensity we had in big matches like we had against Neshaminy and North Penn. We knew it was going to be a fight.”
In the second set, the Bucks led 13-10 after a Saunders kill, and back-to-back winners by Klapper – the second a push to the back corner – gave the Bucks an 18-11 lead on their way to the 25-15 win.
“I think after the first game, we read their hitters, we read where they were going, and we picked it up defensively with blocking and digs and what-not,” Klapper said. “I thought we came out fired up.”
In the third set, the Bucks opened up a 12-7 lead after a Fran Poeske kill. The Eagles pulled to within one (15-14), but Rupert delivered a kill out of a timeout. The Bucks led 22-17 after a Hennigan winner, and a Rupert block in the middle for match point put the finishing touches on the West sweep.
“After you play such a high intense match for a district final, to come out and finish well in your first state match is really the best thing to do,” Miller said. “There were times when we could have cleaned things up.
“It’s not pregame jitters, but it’s absolutely first state (game) jitters. You settle yourself in the first match, and hopefully you play better and keep moving on. I think we accomplished one step in the process. We go back and start preparing.”
The Bucks will face District 11 champion Parkland in a quarterfinal match on Saturday.
#1-2 NESHAMINY 3, #11-2 EMMAUS 0 (25-18, 25-22, 25-13)
Serving was a key in the Redskins’ sweep of the Green Hornets, and nobody was serving better than Ryan Jamison in Wednesday’s PIAA Class AAA opener at Abington. The senior standout had six aces to go along with 16 kills, three blocks and 21 digs in a stellar all-around effort.
“We were just more physical,” Jamison said. “I think we overpowered them at the net, and with our serving, we kind of got them out of system.
“It just feels really good right now. We want to keep playing.”
Wednesday’s win sets up a date with the state’s top-ranked team – Central York - in Saturday’s quarterfinal round.
“It’s all about preparation – looking at the other team and scouting them,” Jamison said. “Looking at their tendencies, which is what we’ll do when we play Central York on Saturday. It comes down to execution.”
Any thoughts that the ‘Skins might have been in for a letdown after an emotional five-set match against Central Bucks West in last Thursday’s district title game were put the rest in a hurry on Wednesday.
“We were hungry,” Jamison said. “This was our first trip to states since 1997, so we really worked hard in practice the last several days.
“We fought with CB West, but they just came out on top, and we were just really hungry to get that win again.”
In addition to Jamison, Chase Fullen had 22 assists, five kills, three aces, two blocks and six digs. Dan Inemer had three kills and three blocks, and Bailey Jones had two kills and four blocks. J.P. Fay had nine digs for the Redskins.
“We really didn’t commit too many errors, and we were serving them tough,” coach Kevin Roode said. “Our blockers had an idea of where it was going, and everything worked off our aggressive serving. It’s a different story if you’re missing them.”
The ‘Skins coach was pleased with his team’s response to a tough five-set loss in the district finals.
“That was a great game,” Roode said. “Our guys were disappointed, but they also knew they had a state playoff berth and went right back to work.”
Neshaminy will take on District 3 champion Central York in Saturday’s quarterfinal.
#11-1 PARKLAND 3, #1-3 PENNRIDGE 1 (22-25, 25-21, 25-17, 25-21)
The Rams won the first set of Tuesday night’s match against the District 11 champions, but Parkland came back to win the next three.
Kolby Smith (12 kills, 17 digs) and Devon Rice (15 kills, 10 digs) had huge nights both offensively and defensively for the Rams, who were once again without senior standout Alex Vellner (injury).
Setter Brad Nase had 40 assists while Steve Braun made important contributions defensively with 15 digs. Also contributing for the Rams were Henry Savage (six kills, four blocks), John Long (six kills, six blocks) and Ben Chinnici (five kills).
The Rams closed out the season with a 15-5 record, tied for ninth place in the state.
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