Denny Dyroff features several SOL teams entering the District One AAA Tournament.
By DENNY DYROFF
One of the greatest rivalries in sports exists in the world of international football (or soccer, as it is known in the United States) -- the rivalry between Spanish giants Barcelona and Real Madrid. Not only are they two of the best teams every year in Spain, they are two of the premier clubs in Europe -- and in the world.
Their rivalry is heated -- and repeated. The two powerhouses meet twice a year in league (La Liga) competition and usually several other times each season in other competitions -- UEFA Champions League, Copa del Rey (King’s Cup) or Supercopa de España (Spanish Super Cup).
The fierce rivalry is of such magnitude that it even has been given its own name -- El Clásico.
In area boys’ volleyball, Council Rock North and Pennsbury have developed their own version of El Clásico.
The Indians and the Falcons meet twice a year in regular-season competition in the Suburban One League National Conference. Then, they frequently bang heads in post-season play --- in the District 1 Class AAA playoffs and/or in the PIAA Class AAA tournament.
Pennsbury and C.R. North have met twice this season and have split the results. The Falcons won at North and the Indians won at Pennsbury -- with both matches going five sets. The teams finished as co-champions in the SOL’s National Conference -- each with an 11-1 conference slate.
Now, there is a good chance they will meet again in the District 1 Class AAA tournament which starts on May 17. North, a returning district finalist, is this year’s top seed while Pennsbury is seeded second.
The Indians enter post-season play with a 16-2 overall record. Last year, they went 10-2 in the league and 18-4 overall. They were silver medalists in the District 1 playoffs and then took eventual state-champion Parkland to five games in the opening round of the state tournament.
Council Rock North’s 2016 squad is loaded with talented veterans, including a septet of seniors -- middle hitter Jason Yakimiv, outside hitter Eric Van Thuyne, setter Logan Fuglestad, opposite hitter Will Desautelle, libero Aaron Knotts, libero/ defensive specialist Alex Saraceno and middle hitter Tommy Angelina.
Other key players for the Indians this season have been junior middle hitter Sean Helmlinger, sophomore outside hitter Harry Wyatt and junior setter Robby Ward.
“The keys to our success gave been experience, senior leadership and tempo,” said CR North Boys coach Greg Marchetti.
“Our expectations for districts are to compete at our highest level and to leave everything that we have on the court. We look forward to the opportunity of representing Council Rock North within a very competitive District One tournament.”
Council Rock North will open 2016 district play in the second round on May 19 against the winner of the match between ninth-seeded Neshaminy and eighth-seeded Christopher Dock (one of two non-SOL teams in the 12-team tournament).
Pennsbury also has a bye into the quarterfinals. On May 19, the Falcons will host the winner of Tuesday’s match between seventh-seeded Souderton and 10th-seeded Avon Grove (the other non-SOL teams in the Class AAA brackets).
If the Falcons play North in the district title game on May 26 at William Tennent, they will definitely have revenge on their agenda.
“I’ve been coaching here for 16 years -- the last 13 as head coach,” said Pennsbury coach Justin Fee. “We’ve won the National Conference 13 of those 16 years -- all except 2006, 2011 and 2015. In 2006, we won districts but not the conference. Last year, Council Rock North won the conference.
“We have the majority of last year’s team back this year -- senior setter Kevin Killoran, senior middle hitters Mason Reilley and Kenny Hickman and junior hitter Sean Sweeney. Mason and Kenny are both blocking really well.”
Last year, Sweeney earned all-league and all-district honors. He has 170 digs this season, 12 away from the all-time school record set by Troy Pereira in 2013 when the Falcons were state runner-up.
“Kevin (Killoran) has been out with an injury for the last two weeks and we’ve been using a freshman Andy Delworth as our setter,” Fee said. “He was the starting setter on our junior varsity and we’ve also used him on varsity as a defensive specialist.
“We also brought sophomore outside hitter Brett Garretson up from jayvee. I like our young crew. They’re going to keep our program moving forward.”
If the Falcons are to keep moving forward this season, they need a quick recovery by Killoran.
“One of the keys for our success at districts is getting Kevin back,” said Fee, who played volleyball and football at Pennsbury and football at West Chester University.
“He sets our middle hitters really well -- and he’s a great blocker. Blocking and defense are our strengths. We’re up-and-down offensively and we’re gradually getting better.”
If the Falcons’ post-season pattern stays true to form, they will have an exciting postseason run.
“We’ve been in four state title matches and lost all four times,” said Fee. “We’ve gone to the big game in 2004, 2007, 2010 and 2013. According to the pattern, this is our year to go again. But, in order to do that, we’re going to have to play very well over the next few weeks.”
If Pennsbury wins its quarterfinal match, the likely semifinal round opponent will be Pennridge. The third-seeded Rams have a first-round bye and then face the winner of the match between sixth-seeded William Tennent and 12th-seeded Council Rock South.
Pennridge is another traditional state powerhouse from the Suburban One League.
The Rams have qualified for states seven seasons in a row under coach Dave Childs, who is in his 11thseason as head coach. Pennridge claimed district titles in 2010, 2012 and 2015.
“We’ve been runner-up a handful of times,” said Childs, whose team fell to Hempfield in the opening round of states last year.
Pennridge finished 15-1 in Continental Conference competition this season with the lone blemish being a home loss to Central Bucks West. The Rams are 15-3 overall with non-league losses to defending state champion Parkland (now ranked number one in the state) and District 3 power Hempfield (ranked fourth in the state).
“We have three returning starters this year -- senior setter Jesse Smith, junior outside hitter Ben Chinnici and senor middle hitter Aaron Nelson,” said Childs. “Everyone else was pretty new to us at the beginning of the year. But, we typically have a decent junior varsity squad -- and good coaching at the jayvee level.”
Our other key players this year, according to Childs, are junior right-side hitter Josiah Friesen, sophomore outside hitter Cross Edwards, senior libero Austin Rush, sophomore middle Kevin Jones and senior defensive specialist Jeremy Baum.
Childs has been able to successfully merge his veterans with his rookies to produce winning results.
“We’re a pretty strong offensive team,” said Childs. “We’re a good serving team and a very good setting team. And, we have a returning all-state player with Ben Chinicci. We play at a fast pace. We try to spread the ball and have good defense.”
While many of the SOL teams are regular participants in the District 1 Class AAA playoffs, Upper Dublin, which received the tourney’s 12thand final seed, is a virtual newcomer.
“This is the first time Upper Dublin has made districts since 2006,” said UD coach Paul Choi. “It’s pretty exciting. Our players are definitely pumped up for this.”
Choi, who played at Upper Dublin, started coaching at his alma mater during his college years at Temple University. He was assistant coach at Upper Dublin for four years, and this is his first year as head coach.
“It’s been a struggle for the boys’ program because we’ve gone through so many head coaches,” Choi said. “Two years was the longest for any of them. In my time as assistant coach, we had three different head coaches. It’s hard to get consistency and stability that way.”
The Cardinals’ 2106 roster features a trio of seniors who are returning starters -- right-side hitter Andy Katz and outside hitters Evan Madden and Calvin Chan.
“We had six seniors graduate last year,” said Choi. “The majority of our juniors are first-year varsity players.”
Upper Dublin’s other regulars this season are freshman middle Matt Ross along with a sextet of juniors -- right-side Albert Sungenis, setters Jose Palomeque and Troy Gomer, middle blocker Erin Glatter, opposite Brandon Ross and libero Joe Choi.
“I knew coming into this year that it would be tough because of the lack of discipline in previous seasons,” said Choi. “It’s gotten better. We’ve got our system. We’ve been progressing throughout the season and we’re clicking at the right time. We finished 8-8 in the league and won six of our last eight matches.
“We’ve developed some team strengths as the season progressed. We’ve tried to stay as consistent as possible -- and to eliminate unforced errors. And, we’ve gotten good leadership from Calvin Chan and our captains Evan Madden and Andy Katz.”
If Upper Dublin is to progress through the district playoffs, it will have to go through Central Bucks schools.
In the opening round, the Cardinals face fifth-seeded Central Bucks East (with whom they split a pair of regular-season matches) with the winner advancing to a quarterfinal match at fourth-seeded central Bucks West.
Tuesday, May 17
#9 Neshaminy at #8 Christopher Dock
#12 Upper Dublin at #5 Central Bucks East
#10 Avon Grove at #7 Souderton
#11 Council Rock South at #6 William Tennent
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