Upper Merion fell to defending state champion Parkland 3-1 in Tuesday’s PIAA Class AAA semifinal match.
By Mary Jane Souder
HOLLAND – Natalie O’Neil fought back tears as she tried to find the words to describe the season just completed. The Upper Merion senior - although disappointed that the Vikings came up short in Tuesday’s PIAA Class AAA semifinal match against Parkland – was most disappointed that something special had ended.
“It’s really sad,” O’Neil said. “I have enjoyed playing with these girls, and that’s the sad part about it. I won’t get to see them every day after school, but it was a great run, and I couldn’t be prouder.”
O’Neil’s pride was well founded.
The Vikings – outsized at every position – battled their way to a win in the first set but couldn’t hold off the mighty Trojans, who earned a hard-fought 3-1 win (25-27, 25-22, 25-12, 25-21). The state’s top-ranked team has not lost a match in two years with the Trojans’ last loss coming two years ago at the hands of the Vikings.
“The effort was fantastic,” coach Tony Funsten said. “I told the kids in the huddle - to say I’m proud of them is a gross understatement. What we have done in the last week is nothing short of phenomenal.
“Then to play a match like this – it was great volleyball. They never gave in.”
O’Neil acknowledged that playing against and with the best was not a bad way to end the season.
“It was actually really fun,” the Vikings’ senior setter said. “We were disappointed, but it was really fun to play them.
“That number 9 – I’m sorry, I don’t know her name, but she was so unbelievable.”
Number nine for the Trojans was Penn State-bound senior Kelly Robertson, who slammed home 37 kills and was unstoppable at the net.
“She’s awesome,” Funsten said. “She’s fabulous. She was arguably the best player in the state last year.”
“She’s killing us,” O’Neil added, “but it’s so cool to see a player like that. It’s so fun to play against someone like that.
“Unfortunately, it didn’t end the way we wanted it to, but it was a fun game to play.”
O’Neil had 32 assists to go along with five kills and six digs. Mel Ingram (13 kills, 19 digs) and Casey Griffith (13 kills, 11 digs) both had big nights for the Vikings. Ashley Shannon had 24 digs while Emily Shannon had six kills and 19 digs.
“I thought we played great defense,” Funsten said. “Mel was money on defense, passing serve. I watched them against (Bishop) Shanahan, and I thought they did not serve well at all.
“They are brutal serving, and they were very aggressive with their serves. If it wasn’t for Casey, Mel and Emily – their passing of serve was ridiculous.”
The first set – which included 15 ties - was a game for the ages. The Vikings opened up a 5-3 lead after a Griffith kill only to watch the Trojans knot the score 6-6. A block by Eryn Brady gave the Vikings a 7-6 lead, and they still led 12-10 after an O’Neil ace.
The Trojans rallied to go on top 16-13 after a Robertson block, but Griffith delivered a tip for a winner out of a Viking timeout. A Robertson kill made it a 17-14 game, but a well-placed winner by Ingram knotted the score 18-18. The Trojans called a timeout after an O’Neil winner put the Vikings on top 19-18. A Robertson kill gave the Trojans a 24-23 lead, but a rare Parkland serving error knotted the score. A Robertson kill out of play gave the Vikings the edge, but a kill by the Penn State-bound senior knotted the score. A pair of Parkland miscues vaulted the Vikings to the big win.
In the second set, the Trojans sprinted to a quick 7-1 lead only to watch the Vikings rally to knot the score 7-7, a 6-0 run that began with a Griffith kill and was capped by a Parkland hit out of play.
The Vikings led 12-11 after the Trojans were whistled for a carry, and it was a 20-20 game after a cross court kill by Ingram. The Trojans outscored the Vikings 5-2 the rest of the way, closing it out with back-to-back Robertson kills.
“Kelly (Robertson) just owns the net, no matter where she is,” Griffith said. “We spent most of the time trying to figure out how to hit around her, but she still found a way to get there and put it down. I’m excited though because she’s on my club team this year, so I’ll get to play with her instead of against her.”
The Trojans rolled to a 25-12 win in the third set, but the fourth set was another battle. An Ingram winner knotted the score 10-10, and it was a 17-17 game after a Griffith service ace. The final tie came at 19-19 after a Trojan net violation, but the Trojans closed it out with a 6-2 run, bringing an end to the Vikings’ season.
“It’s a horrible feeling because it’s my senior year,” Griffith said. “We made it this far, and it’s nothing to be ashamed of, but we could have made it to the finals if we had played a little bit harder.”
Funsten bids farewell to senior starters O’Neil and Griffith.
“In that Cumberland Valley match, I don’t think I have ever seen a player do what Casey (Griffith) did,” Funsten said of his team’s win over the District 3 champions. “She had 79 swings, she had 30 digs, she had 30 passes of serve and she had 19 serves. That’s like a season for some kids, and she did that in one match, in the most important match of our season. It’s ridiculous.
“Her back has been bothering her immensely, and with constant playing, there’s no time for it to get better. She’s been really hampered, and she could not play the way she would have liked to. I asked her to put it on the court, and in the last game, she had three or four kills.”
O’Neil also was impressive in her first varsity season at setter.
“To play under that pressure – she’s a first-year varsity setter,” Funsten said. “To do what she did – look where we are. We’re in the state semifinals.”
The Vikings closed out another successful season with an impressive 22-2 record and an SOL American Conference title.
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