Check the results for SOL girls’ volleyball teams in action on Thursday and Friday.
WILLIAM TENNENT 3, COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 2 (25-21, 25-22, 21-25, 21-25, 15-12)
The Panthers won their eighth straight match on Friday, edging Rock North in another classic battle between the archrivals. The loss avenged a heartbreaking 3-2 loss to the Indians in a match earlier this season that saw the Panthers – who held a 2-1 advantage in games - open up a 24-21 lead in the fourth set only to watch it slip away. That was followed by a heartbreaking loss to Pennsbury in five sets.
“This was a good one for us after dropping those two early league matches,” said coach Brian Bassler, whose team has seen four of its 12 matches go to five sets this season. “I don’t think we’ve had this many go to five over the past several years. Twenty-five percent of our games have gone to a fifth game. This group is like the ‘Heart Attack Kids.’”
Friday’s match followed a familiar pattern for the Panthers, who took the first two games and led 15-9 in the third only to watch the Indians rally to earn the win and then go on and win the fourth set.
“It was kind of like the first time around – they came back from the dead to beat us,” Bassler said. “We’re 9-9 in the fifth (set), and I said to our girls at one point, ‘They’re the defending champs. They’re not going to give you anything - they’re a great team. Krista Campbell is amazing. She’s a great setter, she puts the ball all over the court. It’s time to take it. If you want it, you have to take one of these.’”
The Panthers went on to earn a 15-12 win in the winner-take-all fifth set.
“North and us are so even,” Bassler said. “They do things really well that we don’t do. They are unbelievably strong at the net blocking.
“Our girls are just so resilient. The whole team stays positive, and the defense is unreal. They don’t let anything hit the ground without a touch. They’re diving all over the place.”
The Panthers’ standout defensive effort was underscored by the 30-dig performance of Chelsea Gallagher while the team’s libero, CC Weir, had 18 digs. Jaime Bonner added 12 digs while Casey McMahon added 11 and Alex Koppany, nine digs.
“We have great personalities on the team, and it’s not just seniors,” Bassler said. “The seniors are amazing, but in the huddle, we constantly have juniors and sophomores saying, ‘We’re not losing tonight. Keep pushing. Stay positive. Stay together.’
“Penncrest was a great building block for us, winning that in five, but this was a league match, and our girls really wanted. They wanted to get some revenge. North, Pennsbury and us – from what we have been separated by, anybody could be in the position of being undefeated.”
In addition to leading the team in digs, Gallagher, a senior outside hitter, also had a huge night at the net, delivering 19 kills.
“There’s nothing flashy about her games,” Bassler said. “She’s smart, she’s solid.
“She plays all the way around, and her kills – she will be getting them from tips and rolls and then will hit one hard off the blocks. She’s super intelligent and all over the floor every night. These past two weeks have probably been her best.”
Bonner also had a big night at the net, contributing 14 kills.
“Jaime hits the ball harder than anybody, and they bailed us out when we needed it,” said Bassler of Gallagher and Bonner. “They’re our go-to players when we need to get out of a jam, but everyone is playing well.”
Bassler went on to acknowledge the performance of sophomore setter Alex Koppany, who had 36 assists.
“She’s learning on the fly right now to spread the ball around,” the Panthers’ coach said. “She’s super talented but learning the game as we go along.
“She started from day one as a sophomore, and it’s just a matter of getting the game down. She’s been doing better match by match.”
Waiting in the wings for the Panthers is a Pennsbury squad that has not lost in league play. Tennent will face Bensalem on Monday but will travel to Pennsbury on Tuesday for a key National Conference showdown.
SOUDERTON 3, NORTH PENN 0 (25-16, 25-21, 25-15)
The Indians stunned the Maidens to earn their first conference win in two years. The last time the Indians won in conference play was Oct. 10, 2011, when they defeated Quakertown 3-2.
On Wednesday, the Indians fell to Quakertown in a match that saw the Panthers notch their first conference win of the season.
“It’s a huge confidence boost for the girls,” coach Dave Childs said. “I felt like we were getting better and playing better, but we just hadn’t gotten wins yet.
“Tonight everything kind of clicked. Everyone contributed. We just played well and didn’t make too many mistakes.”
Childs knew he was facing a complete rebuilding process when he took over the helm of a program that had fallen on hard times, but the first-year coach knows something about building a program. He has turned Pennridge into a perennial district and state power, and he is looking to change the fortunes of Souderton as well.
“We talked about it yesterday, and I had to remind myself about it – I want to win, but it’s a process,” said Childs. “It’s about playing the right way and doing the right things on the court.
“We’ll get better. It might not be as fast as we want it to be, but they’ve been doing the right things, and it was great to see that come together in a win tonight.”
Sophomore Savannah Bostwick led the defense with 16 digs.
“She’s played real well the last couple of games,” Childs said. “It’s really been a team effort, but defensively, she’s very good. She brings everything up from back there, and it’s a hard spot to play.”
Megan Freed led the way at the net with eight kills to go along with four digs and four aces. Melissa Gould had seven kills while Alycia Beebe had four kills, two blocks, five digs and two aces. Terry Wilcox had three kills and two aces and Stef Kluka had three kills. Cori Watson had 21 assists, eight digs and six aces.
“We didn’t make mistakes,” Childs said. “We had four hitting errors, which was really good. We played really strong at the net, and our serve receive was better than it had been all season.
“Everything kind of came together at once. We had a good day at practice. Everyone felt good going in today. I think they were frustrated with the way we played on Wednesday against Quakertown. They were disappointed in that, and that might have been a wake-up call as well.”
The Indians are 1-6 in the league (2-7 overall). They will travel to William Tennent on Wednesday.
ABINGTON 3, NORRISTOWN 1 (22-25, 25-13, 25-10, 25-19)
The Ghosts (5-3) dropped the first set but rolled to wins in the next three. Carley Cooper (six kills, two blocks, eight digs, two aces) and Claire Gassman (seven kills, nine digs, two aces) once again led the Ghosts. Leah Simmons added two kills, one block and five aces, and Lizzie Lloyd had two assists, two kills, one block, four aces and three digs. Setter Emma Garg had 17 assists and three digs and one ace. Defensively, Jamie Kidd and Tara Santora led the way with 11 digs each. Kidd also had a pair of aces.
UPPER DUBLIN 3, CHELTENHAM 0 (25-13, 25-21, 25-20)
Taylor D’Ginto led the Flying Cardinals with five aces, one kill, nine assists and three digs. Melanie Phifer had five aces, seven kills, two digs, and Taylor Stek added 10 kills in a big performance at the net.
PENNRIDGE 3, CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH (25-13, 28-26, 25-19)
The Rams earned their biggest win of the season when they swept the Titans in a match played at CB South. Steph Judkins had a big night for the Lady Rams, contributing 14 kills, 13 digs and five aces. Victoria Jones had 10 kills. Lauren Drugotch had nine kills, and Ariana Pryzbylowski added eight kills. Kara Weaver led the defense with 15 digs while setters Julia Donnelly and Meghan Keefe combined for 35 assists.
CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 3, QUAKERTOWN 0 (27-25, 25-16, 25-19)
The Bucks were led by Alicia West with seven kills, five aces and 10 digs. Sophia Videva had seven kills and three blocks, and Ashley Juliano had five kills, four aces and one block. Kailey Prall led the defense with 27 digs. Kelly McKinstry (three kills, one ace, 28 assists) and Candace Rupert (four kills, four blocks, one ace) also made important contributions.
For the Panthers, setter Jen Sterner had 19 assists to go along with four kills. Amanda Pursel (seven kills, four digs) and Haley Sheehan (seven kills, two digs) led the way at the net while Sabrina Lee (five kills, one block), Katelyn Spieker (five kills), Liana Buonanno Taylor (12 digs) and Lindsay Beck (10 digs) also made important contributions.
UPPER MERION 3, HATBORO-HORSHAM 0 (25-13, 25-14, 25-13)
Melanie Ingram led the Vikings to a sweep of the Hatters, contributing 17 kills, three aces and 13 digs in a superb individual effort. Emily Shannon added 12 kills, 15 digs and 24 services points. The Viking middles dominated play at the net with Niki Carpenter delivering four blocks and Eryn Brady with two blocks. Ashley Shannon had 15 assists and 14 digs.
For the Hatters, Sam Jones had six kills and nine digs. Alexa Kennedy had five kills, and Cassidy Quattro had five kills. Jaime Stockzo had three blocks and Katie McKay, two blocks. Candyce Riley had 20 digs while Rachel DeMarco had 15 and Allison Laucella had eight. Katie McKay had 13 assists and Hannah Steiger, 10 digs.
NESHAMINY 3, HARRY S TRUMAN 0 (25-15, 25-17, 25-18)
Molly MacDonald served for seven aces and added eight digs. Miranda Foster had five aces, three kills and two blocks. Kassie Ockford had six digs, four kills and two aces. Danielle Catapano had 12 assists, two aces and two kills. Corinne Garuffe set for the Redskins and had five assists and two aces.
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