Check out the results for SOL volleyball teams in action on Monday.
National Conference
PENNSBURY 3, WILLIAM TENNENT 2 (20-25, 25-16, 25-23, 23-25, 18-16)
In the match of the day Monday, the Falcons won a classic battle against the Panthers.
“The girls really worked hard at the end and never lost confidence in themselves or their teammates,” coach Michael Falter said. “Tennent played amazing defense and just kept the ball in play, which led to a good amount of unforced errors on our part.
“I believe we finally learned tonight that if you play loud and with emotion, it allows you to raise the level of your play.”
Cara Reilly had a monster game for the Falcons, contributing 22 kills, two aces and 20 digs. Brandi Steiner added 13 kills, and Ava Patterson had 10 kills, three aces and 14 digs. Lauren Brandfield had eight kills, and Taylor McCartney added seven kills and 19 digs. Dagny Gould led the defense with 21 digs. Setter Kelsey Ongradi was credited with 53 assists to go along with seven digs.
“Cara Reilly really turned it on in the last game and came up with some crucial points,” Falter said. “However, our middles did such a great job of working to be up and available every time.
“All in all, it was a great team win that we had been looking forward to since our trip to Tennent last season which resulted in a loss.”
For the Falcons, the loss was their second heartbreaker in as many SOL outings, coming on the heels of a five-game loss to Council Rock North.
“I told our girls I have never been so proud of a team that lost,” Tennent coach Brian Bassler said. “I would rather lose with them than win with some other teams because they really do lay it all on the line, especially our libero (CC Weir).
“Mike said, ‘I thought she graduated. I can’t believe how much ground she covers.’”
Weier finished the night with 28 digs while teammate Chelsea Gallagher had 26 digs to lead Tennent’s defense. Casey McMahon had 15 digs, Jaime Bonner, 13 digs and Alex Koppany, 12 digs. Bonner led the Panthers at the net with 17 kills while Gallagher added eight.
“It’s heartbreaking, but you would rather be in matches like that than go out there and win at a lower level,” Bassler said. “That was just really high level, great play. It was fun to watch. We were tied 14-14 and lost 18-16.
“To be honest, Rock North, Pennsbury and us – any one of us could beat the other team 3-0, or it could be a match like this because the games are going to be so close. Offensively, I think North and Pennsbury have the edge on us. They just have so much more firepower, but our defense is really good. Our girls are scrappy – they hang in there, and they’re starting to play smart, which is leading to good things.
“I hate to lose, but these matches are so valuable. Mentally, to take each other’s best shots like that, we could have folded down 2-1. Just to see the mentality of both teams not giving up and not giving in to the other side and not cracking is unbelievable.”
While the Panthers fell to 0-2 in the league, the Falcons upped their record to 2-0.
COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 3, HARRY S TRUMAN
The Golden Hawks received important contributions from senior outside hitter Katie Quinn (five kills, seven aces, two blocks), junior middle hitter Donna Spiteri (six kills, four aces, two blocks), junior setter Melissa Nicholas (five aces, 15 assists) and senior libero Lexie Kremp (29 digs).
NESHAMINY 3, BENSALEM 0 (25-16, 25-5, 25-18)
Junior Kassie Ockford had six kills and two aces while teammate Miranda Foster had five aces, two kills and one block to lead the Redskins. Setter Danielle Catapano had 10 assists, three aces and two kills, and senior Molly MacDonald added eight digs and two aces.
Continental Conference
CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 3, CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 0 (25-19, 25-16, 25-22)
The Patriots served notice that they are the team to beat in the Continental Conference with their sweep of the defending conference champions.
“It was an unbelievable opening match between two great teams,” coach Scott Geller said. “Hard work and perseverance was a key to our success.
“I told the kids from day one that if we just concentrate on working hard, everything else will follow. I couldn’t be more proud of these girls.”
Rachel Clow (11 kills), Hannah Lunak (nine kills) and Lindsay McIntosh (seven kills five blocks) led the Patriots at the net. Erin Lane led the defense with 12 digs to go along with a team-high five service aces. Kelly Guillen had five kills.
CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 3, NORTH PENN 1 (25-14, 17-25, 25-19, 25-10)
In yet another classic battle between the Continental Conference rivals, the Titans eked out the win.
“The match was closer than the score shows,” coach Ulana Keer said. “We came out very strong in game one and made very few errors.
“Caitlyn McCrory was able to come out strong with her serving and make a run in the game by scoring nine points and putting North Penn out of system. North Penn rallied back and made up some difference, but at 14, we just rallied and scored the rest of the points.
“In game two, they forced us into some errors early on, and we were unable to come back. Games three and four were dominated by the strong net play of Jax Babezki and Jackie Haffey, both in blocking and attacks. Madi Conroy made good decisions in distributing hits to Taylor Danilowicz and Cecilia Miller. Larissa Keer passed well and dug well.”
Babezki led the Titans at the net with nine kills and six solo bocks to go along with three aces. Miller had six kills and five digs. Danilowicz had five kills, and Haffey added four kills and six blocks. Larissa Keer led the defense with 12 digs on a night that saw the Titans deliver 30 digs. Keer also had one ace. Caitlyn McCrory had five aces and two digs. Madi Conroy was credited with 19 assists, and Lindsey Edling had six. Erin Cleary had one kill.
PENNRIDGE 3, QUAKERTOWN 1, (25-13, 25-13, 23-25, 25-8)
Steph Judkins led the Rams at the net with 11 kills to go along with eight aces. Victoria Jones had nine kills and five aces. Setters Julia Donnelly and Meghan Keefe both had 11 assists for the Rams.
American Conference
PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 3, CHELTENHAM 0 (25-15, 25-16, 25-17)
Senior Emily Houck led the Colonials with nine kills, one assist, four aces and five digs while junior Cara Sweeney had eight kills and three digs. Junior Bridget Raimondo had six kills, three assists and two digs, and junior Hannah Thomas had five kills and two digs. Senior Tori Biggins delivered four kills, 29 assists, five aces and eight digs. Junior Rachel Isackman (three kills, eight aces, seven digs) and junior Keelin McEleney (three kills, two assists, three aces, four digs) also made important contributions.
HATBORO-HORSHAM 3, ABINGTON 0 (25-5, 25-21, 25-15)
The Lady Hatters got off to a great start and never looked back. The win was the result of a collaborative effort. Junior middle blocker Dymond Black dominated at the net with nine blocks and three kills. Junior outside hitter Sam Jones contributed greatly with seven blocks, 11 kills, three aces, and a service run of nine points. Sophomore outside hitter Cassidy Quattro added 7 kills. Junior Candyce Riley had four service aces, six digs and served 10 points. Junior middle blocker Kate Hollenbeck served 18 points and contributed four blocks. Freshman defensive specialist Allison Laucella added three digs and served 10 points. Senior setters Hannah Steiger and Katie McKay dished out 15 and 11 assists respectively.
NORRISTOWN 3, WISSAHICKON 1 (25-18, 15-25, 25-22, 25-15)
The Lady Eagles had a total of 16 kills, led by seniors Jackie Cook with five and Morgan Kampmeier with four. Senior setter Karla Ronan had 12 assists. The Eagles also served for 13 aces, led by the four-ace effort of sophomore Taijah James. Jackie Cook and Lucy Cusamono each had three aces.
UPPER MERION 3, UPPER DUBLIN 0 (25-12, 25-16, 25-6)
The Vikings rolled to a straight set win over the Flying Cardinals, who were led by the seven-kill, two-block effort of Taylor Stek.
Saturday, Sept. 7
Tournament Wrap
Council Rock South won its pool at the Spring-Ford Tournament Saturday, splitting with North Penn and Little Flower. The Golden Hawks took a pair from Academy Park and finished in first place due to point differentials and head-to-head scoring. The Golden Hawks fell to Downingtown West in the semifinals after an injury that stunned the team.
Central Bucks East captured second place in Saturday’s Pleasant Valley Invitational.
“We played at a very high level all day,” coach Scott Geller said. “We had a great effort from all the players on the team.
“These girls continue to amaze me with their effort and drive to continue to better themselves.”
Hannah Lunak (23 kills, three aces), Rachel Clow (23 kills, nine aces), Lindsay McIntosh (22 kills), Bridgette Terrel (16 kills, five aces) and Lauren Helveston (four kills, seven aces, 99 assists) led the Patriots.
UPPER MERION 3, STRATH HAVEN 0 (25-17, 25-19, 25-21)
Upper Merion defeated a strong Strath Haven team on Friday night in three sets. Strath Haven has made the state tournament in each of the last two seasons, winning the Central League title last year. The Lady Vikings seized the lead early in the first set and kept it throughout as UM won 25-17. Upper Merion kept the pressure on by taking a big lead in second set. Strath Haven closed the gap and the Lady Vikings won 25-19. The Lady Panthers would not go easily in the third set and behind some very aggressive serving, the Haven got within 20-17 before UM prevailed 25-21. Upper Merion showed great balance as contributions came from all UM players in all aspects of the game. Melanie Ingram had 12 kills and Emily Shannon had 11. Eryn Brady, Niki Carpenter and Mimi Daniels combined for 10 kills and 7 blocks. Kailyn McNamee had 17 digs, Emily 14 and Melanie 10. Ashley Shannon and Carlye Odorisio shared 24 assists while Carlye added 6 aces. The victory raises Upper Merion's record to 3-0 for the young season.
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