Check out the recaps for Thursday’s District One 3A seconds round matches. Neshaminy/Souderton photos provided courtesy of Jon Sklut. Check back for a gallery of photos.
No. 1 Council Rock North 3, No. 9 Abington 1 (22-25, 25-22, 25-21, 25-19)
The Indians dropped the first set of Thursday’s second round match but bounced back to win the next three.
“Abington came out with intensity, and we came out flat,” Rock North coach James Koodathil said. “The boys minimized their errors as the match went on, and timely defense, both blocking and digging, helped us gain momentum throughout. The boys decided to play our game and dictated the pace from the second set onward.”
Justin Burns had a big match, finishing with 21 kills, 12 digs and one ace. Brady Klein added 10 kills, nine digs and two aces, and Riley Campbell had seven kills and three blocks. Geoffrey Sanhanamudi (23 assists, 10 digs) and Dylan Vanschaick (22 assists, 4 digs, 2 aces) shared setting duties.
Abe Eldo led the Indians’ defense with 17 digs and Martin Nguyen had eight digs. Anthony Depalo had five blocks and three kills, and Luke Sill added three kills, one block and three digs.
Council Rock North (17-1, 11-1 SOL) will host No. 4 Pennridge on Tuesday.
No. 2 Upper Dublin 3, No. 7 William Tennent 1 (25-22, 28-26, 22-25, 25-22)
In a classic district battle, the Flying Cardinals edged the Panthers, winning three sets by three, two and three points. The Panthers won the third set by – three points, what else.
“It was a back and forth match against a well-coached Tennent team,” UD coach Paul Choi said. “Tennent played very solid all around, and it took a whole team effort to take them down. UD continues making history in its program heading into the semifinals.”
Trevor Molloy (15 kills, 8 digs, 2 aces) and Colin Dowdell (11 kills, 7 blocks, 3 digs) had big games at the net. Setter Spencer Beidner handed out 48 assists to go along with 20 digs, three kills and three blocks.
The Cardinals were led defensively by David Levin (22 digs, 8 kills, 3 aces), Sean Bainbridge (22 digs, 3 assists) and Sean Seabrook (17 digs, 3 kills). Also making contributions were Collin Ross (4 kills, 2 blocks), Noah Fechter (3 kills) and Terrell Turner (4 kills, 1 block).
For the Panthers, Mike Carr (13 kills, 12 digs, 2 blocks) and Jay Layer (12 kills, 12 digs) both finished with impressive double-doubles. Jack Steilen also was a force at the net, finishing with seven kills, eight blocks and one ace. Kirby Mooney added three kill and two blocks. Ben Weir (17 kills, 2 kills) and Cody Keeny (20 digs) anchored the defense. Setter Paul Nedeoglo finished with 36 assists and two blocks.
Upper Dublin (20-1, 13-1 SOL) will host No. 3 Neshaminy on Tuesday. William Tennent closed out its season with a 10-6 record (6-4 SOL).
No. 3 Neshaminy 3, No. 6 Souderton 0
The Redskins earned a sweep of the visiting Indians to earn a trip to the district semifinals.
“It was a great team victory over a very tough Souderton team,” Neshaminy coach Pat Klingerman said. “I’m glad to see our guys coming together as one unit and battling together.”
Paul Allen (9 kills, 3 aces, 1 dig, 1 block), Josh Clendening (8 kills, 1 block), Josh Hamilton (6 kills, 2 blocks), Kieran Edwards (6 kills, 2 blocks) and Ben Clendening (4 kills, 2 blocks) all contributed to a balanced attack at the net. Setter Nick Storz dished out 30 assists and also contributed three kills, one ace, three digs and two blocks. Jesse Kovaschetz (9 digs, 1 assist), Stephen Fario (5 digs, 2 aces) and Aaron Benjamin (3 digs, 1 ace) also contributed.
Neshaminy (15-2, 10-2 SOL) will travel to Upper Dublin on Tuesday. Souderton closed out its season with a 14-7 record (10-4 SOL).
No. 4 Pennridge 3, No. 5 Unionville 2
The visiting Indians gave the Rams all they could handle in Thursday’s second round match, but the Rams – behind a monster performance from Ryan Benscoter - rallied from a 2-1 deficit after three sets to win the next two, eking out a 17-15 win in the winner-take-all fifth set to keep their season alive.
Benscoter was unstoppable at the net, finishing with 32 kills. He also was a force at the service line where he had seven aces. Dan Detweiler anchored the Rams’ defensive effort with 12 digs, and setter Riley Kodidek had 42 assists and two blocks.
Also making important contributions were Thomas McKinney (6 kills, 8 digs), Bryce Muller (5 kills, 3 aces), Tyler Johnson (5 kills, 4 blocks) and Skyler Ammon (3 kills, 5 aces).
Pennridge (15-2, 12-2 SOL) will travel to No. 1 Council Rock North on Tuesday.
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