Pennsbury fell in four sets to second-seeded Upper Merion in a District One 3A semifinal on Thursday. Pennsbury/Upper Merion photos provided courtesy of Donna Longacre. To view a gallery of photos, please visit the Photo Gallery at the following link: http://photos.suburbanonesports.com/g/110117_upper_merion_vs_pennsbury_-_district_semi-finals_dl
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#1-2 UPPER MERION 3, #1-3 PENNSBURY 1 (20-25, 25-23, 26-24, 25-15)
Late in the third set of Wednesday’s district semifinal match, Julia Vreeswyk took one big swing after another in a rally that seemed as though it would never end. In most matches, her first kill attempt would have landed for a winner. In this one, it took three, perhaps four swings before the senior standout’s kill fell in for a winner that pulled the Falcons to within one of the Vikings (20-19).
“When I was hitting like that, I was trying to go cross, go line,” Vreeswyk said. “They’re a good defensive team.”
The Falcons went on to knot the score 24-24 only to see the Vikings close out the set with a Tori Wright kill and a block at the net for set point. It was that kind of night for the Falcons. After winning the first set, they spent the next three trying to get over the hump but could not close it out.
“As the game went on, they started to pick up their defense,” Vreeswyk said. “I think the second set – we gave it our all, and we fell short. That killed us because they definitely tired us out.
“Just the little things killed us, but this game doesn’t define us. We’re going to play on Friday, go in states and we’re going to do well.”
Tuesday’s match – played in front of a decidedly partisan Viking crowd on Toga Night – was hard-fought and entertaining. The night certainly started off on a promising note for the Falcons when they won the opening set, turning an 8-7 deficit into a 10-8 lead after Elley Torres served for three straight points. They went on to open up a 14-10 advantage and led by as many as six. They won it when Shelby Hastings delivered a block for set point.
“I think that first set was the best we’ve passed all season,” coach Mike Falter said. “We were definitely in tune, and then they started to serve more aggressively and kept the ball in play more in the second set. That definitely took us out of system, but I still think we got the ball to our hitters. It just wasn’t as clean.”
In the second set, the Vikings raced out to a 5-1 lead. A Vreeswyk kill pulled the Falcons to within one (12-11), and Kiley Bucknum’s service ace gave them a 13-12 lead. A Brooke Burns winner was followed by a Vikings hit out of play, and then Vreeswyk delivered a kill to give the Falcons a 16-12 advantage. They still led 19-15 after a UM hit sailed out of play, but the Vikings came roaring back, knotting the score on a service ace and going on to open up a 22-20 lead after a pair of Falcon passing miscues. A Sydney Buell kill pulled the Falcons to within one, but that’s as close as they would get.
“It sucked to lose that because you’re putting in your all, you’re putting in your energy,” Vreeswyk said. “We fought back in the third set.
“We were always fighting to come back because they were always up, and it’s really hard to come back against a good, skilled team.”
The Falcons fell behind 16-10 in the third set, but they battled back, pulling to within one (20-19) after the Vreeswyk kill to cap a long rally. Another rally – this one even longer – was won when Emma Andraka delivered a kill that put the Vikings on top 21-19.
“Even if you’re on the losing side, any time you have the ball going over the net seven or eight times and girls are just whaling the ball and popping it up, that’s exciting volleyball,” Falter said.
Back-to-back Vreeswyk kills – the second off a Viking block – knotted the score 21-21, prompting UM coach Tony Funsten to call a timeout. The Vikings responded, going on top 23-21 after a block, but the Falcons knotted the score at 23 all on a Vreeswyk service winner. It was a 24-24 game after a Viking hit out of play, but the Vikings won the next two points.
In the fourth set, the two teams were deadlocked 4-4, but a Wright kill and a Vikings service ace gave the Vikings a 6-4 lead. A Buell tip for a winner pulled the Falcons to within one, but Wright followed with a dink of her own. The Falcons would get no closer than three the rest of the way.
“Even after losing the second set – all night I thought we could beat them,” Falter said. “They’re a beatable team.
“They played more consistent than we did. I thought we played a great match. I just think at times we had holes on our defense because we didn’t quite do our job, but overall, I thought we played great.
“(Upper Merion) progressively got better as the night went on. Their defense got better and better. Our defense was pretty much the same all night – good but with a mental lapse here and there. If we would have done our job, who knows?”
Andraka and Wright were an effective one-two punch for the Vikings. Wright, in particular, made like difficult for the Falcons with big kills and equally effective tips.
“It’s hard because we’re always ready for the big hits, and when we see a tip, we’re not really used to it,” Vreeswyk said. “We just need to stay in our base defense. We took off points on that – we weren’t in our base defense, and it really killed us in end.”
The effectiveness of the Vikings’ defense is underscored by the Falcons’ .099 hitting percentage in the match.
Vreeswyk was the Falcons’ most productive hitter, finishing with 17 kills. She also had three digs, one block and one service ace. Buell had six kills and a team-high 19 digs. Elley Torres also had six kills, 11 digs and three aces. Bucknum had 30 assists, one kill, seven digs and one service ace. Burns added three kills, one dig and three solo blocks. Hastings had two kills and three solo blocks.
“Our kids stuck with it tonight,” Falter said. “There were times this season, especially against CB East and Spring-Ford, if the match was close or even if we were a little behind, they would kind of crawl into a shell.
“In sets two and three when we were behind, they stuck with it, they chipped away. We were right there, we were competing every point. They didn’t quit all night.”
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