Pennsbury advanced to Wednesday’s District One 4A semifinal against Upper Meiron and also earned a berth in the state tournament. CB West will vie for final state berth.
1-3 PENNSBURY 3, #1-11 SPRING-FORD 2 (25-22, 25-19, 19-25, 17-25, 15-10)
The Falcons are bound for states.
It’s the first time they have been able to make that claim in at least eight years.
“When you looked over the program, it seemed like the mentality was – as long as we beat (Council Rock) North and as long as we win the league title, we’re content with that, and I get that, but coming over from the boys’ program and all the success (Justin) Fee and I had, playing in four state championships – you’ve got to think bigger than that,” coach Mike Falter said. “You’ve got to want more than that, so it’s been a process, getting girls to buy in that it’s more than just the two North matches and an SOL title. You’ve got to set your goals a little higher. I’m thankful for this senior class and the fact that they did want that and they bought into it.”
Monday’s quarterfinal match was not without its anxious moments, although it looked as though the Falcons were cruising after they won the first two sets.
“It was scary tonight,” Falter said. “We came out in the first two sets and played good volleyball, and then sets three and four and the fact that we were up 2-0 – to Spring-Ford’s credit, they definitely picked up their defense in sets three and four.
“They were making some amazing plays, and obviously, an offensive team like we are – when you face a team that keeps picking you up and picking you up, it gets frustrating, and we started cutting corners on our side of the court.
“We didn’t necessarily fill our responsibilities defensively. We weren’t moving to the ball. We were just kind of hoping they would fold and give us the win. We didn’t really want to go out and earn it. To their credit, they played very well in sets three and four.”
The Falcons had the advantage of playing on their home court on Monday, an edge they earned by earning the district’s third seed. They responded to the Vikings’ run by winning the fifth and final set.
“It was a team effort,” Falter said. “The fourth set the way it finished – it was bad. We lost 25-17, but the last five or six points – all the momentum was in Spring-Ford’s favor.
“I was anxious to see how the fifth would start. I think we got off to a 4-1 lead. We are struggling trying to figure out how to play well from behind, so the fact that we were up 4-1 allowed the girls to be a little more relaxed and come out with the win. Us getting that early lead was the main factor in pulling out the set.
“Everybody chipped in at one point. Obviously, Julia (Vreeswyk) was the go-to person at the end, but Spring-Ford was playing phenomenal defense against her.”
Vreeswyk led the Falcons with 16 kills, 10 digs, four blocks and two aces. Sydney Buell had 13 kills five digs, two blocks and one ace. Brooke Burns had seven kills (.462 hitting percentage), and Elley Torres had six kills, 10 digs and one ace. Setter Kiley Bucknum had 40 assists, five kills, eight digs, two blocks and two aces, and Heather Linker had 10 digs.
“I’m so happy for this senior class, I really am,” Falter said. “It’s something they wanted. The league title was the first thing, and then we accomplished that.
“Qualifying for states – not one girl on the roster has ever experienced that before, so I was very, very happy for them and thankful they could pull it off. Even if we did lose, we’d still have the opportunity to get the fifth seed, but I didn’t want to go that route. I wanted to accomplish that goal tonight. Now, moving forward – we qualified for states, so we can let the nerves settle a little.”
Pennsbury (23-1, 17-1 SOL) will travel to Upper Merion for Wednesday night’s district semifinal.
“Hopefully, we can go out Wednesday night at Upper Merion and just battle because I know they’re a solid team,” Falter said. “Right now we can play with nothing to lose because we’re the underdog – they’ve qualified for states, they’ve accomplished their goal, so hopefully, they’ll play a little looser on Wednesday.”
#2 UPPER MERION 3, #1-10 CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 0 (25-9, 25-23, 25-13)
The Bucks were swept by the Vikings, but their season is not over. They are one of four teams vying for the fifth and final playoff spot. Central Bucks West (19-6, 14-4 SOL) will host 11th-seeded Spring-Ford in a playback game on Wednesday.
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