By Ara Grigorian
The top teams in Section Two moved on to the semifinals of the L-L League volleyball playoffs as both Garden Spot and Conestoga Valley won on Monday night at CV.
The Lady Bucks defeated Manheim Township, while Garden Spot's play marked an early exit for Section One runner up Warwick.
The Lady Bucks and Blue Streaks were involved in a tough tussle that involved four close games. Conestoga Valley prevailed 23-25, 25-23, 25-21 and 25-17.
The Spartans lost their opener by a 23-25 margin as well even though they trailed by 10 points early on. They then posted victories of 25-23, 25-21 and 25-17. No, that's not a cut-n-paste job.
The other quarterfinal matches were held at Lancaster Mennonite. The Hempfield Black Knights blanked Manheim Central while the host Blazers beat Ephrata 3-0.
Conestoga Valley was led by seniors Heather Martin and Heather Long, who posted four aces and 15 kills, respectively. The Spartans got two aces each from sophomore outside hitter Abby Martin and sophomore Steph High while junior Steph Doherty poured in 14 kills. Junior Julia O'Brien put up four blocks.
But the back-and-forth battle between the two rivals Garden Spot and Conestoga Valley tipped in the Spartans' favor on Tuesday as they defeated the Lady Bucks in three close games at Manheim Township.
Conestoga Valley held a 22-19 lead in the opening game before Garden Spot came back for a 28-26 squeaker. The tenacious CV side held strong as the Spartans were denied game point on three different occasions.
Garden Spot took the second game 25-19. The third game was another nail-biter that the Spartans came back and won 27-25. In this one, it was Conestoga Valley that had a tough time putting it away despite a 24-23 lead.
Stoltzfus and junior Rachel Barlow each served up three aces for CV. It was once again Crills and Long leading the team in blocks with two each while Stambaugh poured in nine kills.
High led the Spartans with three aces. She also had a key block in the first game. Doherty had a game-high total of 12 kills and O'Brien put up five blocks.
FOOTBALL
When you're having the kind of season senior Kevin Kelley is having for CV, some people may call your 113-yard rushing night an "off night."
Kelley had been averaging 210 yards per game coming into Friday night's Section Two showdown against Cocalico. The Eagles defense "held" the star tailback to 113 yards as they posted a 21-14 Section Two victory.
The host Eagles pulled even with the Buckskins in the section standings with a 4-2 mark. With only one regular season game remaining, the Buckskins won't be able to catch Manheim Central (6-0; 9-0 overall). The Barons blew away Lebanon by a 47-0 score to clinch the Section Two title.
The Buckskins tied the score at 7-7 in the first quarter on a nine-yard touchdown pass from Alex Dienner to Stefan Sensenig. Dienner completed 10 of 18 pass attempts for 163 yards and two touchdowns on the night. His other TD pass was a 31-yarder to Leonard Williams, giving the Buckskins a 14-7 lead that held up 'til halftime.
Thanks to a missed extra point by Cocalico, the Buckskins were still leading by a point when Eagles QB Matt Carty scored on a four-yard run in the third quarter.
But with Austin Hartman's five-yard run to the end zone and a Carty
completion for the two-point conversion, the Eagles grabbed a 21-14 lead with 6:40 to play. Carty's defensive contribution on the night included an interception late in the fourth quarter, halting a Conestoga Valley comeback effort.
The Buckskins' final regular season game will be at home against Ephrata next Friday. Kelley, who now is averaging 199.8 yards per game, will need "only" 202 more to reach 2,000 on the regular
season.
SOCCER
The Buckskins defeated Cumberland Valley 2-0 in the first round of the District Three Class-AAA playoffs as senior Josiah Groff netted two goals.
Both of Groff's goals came in the second half, helping the Buckskins advance to the district quarterfinals. He scored six minutes into the second half and again with two minutes remaining in regulation.
The Eagles out-shot the Buckskins 9-3 but with Matt Hoffman's dependable goaltending (nine saves), the Buckskins posted the shutout.
The Eagles were 3-0 winners over Governor Mifflin in the play-in round on Monday, October 26 whereas the Buckskins had earned a bye through the play-in round.
Hoffman's effort came in a losing effort in the Buckskins next game, however, as Mechanicsburg eked out a 1-0 victory in a quarterfinal match played at Hempfield on Saturday, October 31. Conestoga Valley's (14-6-2) hopes for a district title came to an end from a Wildcats (15-6) team that had stunned Manheim Township two nights before, beating the L-L League champs by the same score.
The Buckskins goalie held back eight shots except one by Sean Swidersky, whose goal lifted the Wildcats (15-6) into the district semis.
CROSS COUNTRY
In the District Three Championships at Parkview on Wednesday, the Buckskins' Naeb Manisteab raced to the finish line in an impressive 17:55 impressive enough to qualify for the PIAA.
Manisteab finished 39th overall in a race that was won by Chuck Lockwood (16:36) of Dallastown. Alex Galli of Cedar Crest was the top L-L League finisher, taking ninth place in 17:14.
Buckskin teammate Michael Rosario ran at an 18:22 clip, finishing 69th overall. The Buckskins finished 21st as a team with 618 points.
