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It wasn't the ending they wanted, and the tears reflected that.
Meadville might have beaten York Suburban 3-1 in the PIAA Class 2A boys volleyball final at Penn State on June 13, but the Trojans have nothing to hang their heads about.
"There's a lot of really good people behind me," coach Oliver Good said from the Penn State media room. "This is an impressive group of student athletes. They are leaders in the school, leaders in their families. Our program, it's been a journey."
It was a journey seven seniors started three years ago. A journey to rebuild a program that went off the rails during the pandemic. The Trojans were coming off their second PIAA final appearance in 2019 when the 2020 season was wiped out.
"If you look back in our history in the past three years, most of the people behind us were playing on the varsity court," Good said. "As you can imagine, that didn't always go as smoothly as it did this season. We had some growing pains. We took some hard losses to teams we never lost to before."
But the upperclassmen bought into the program, they committed themselves to rebuilding. And this year, they committed to playing nearly a month after graduation, while classmates were hitting the beach and getting on with their summers.
They won a District 3 title and cruised through the first three rounds of the state tournament to face the team that had been ranked No. 1 in the state throughout the season. A team that was powered by future Penn State volleyball player Luc Soerensen.
The Trojans came out firing on all cylinders in the first set, winning 25-21 before falling in the next three 21-25, 18-25, 20-25.
"We knew he was going to get his kills," York Suburban senior Trent Weinstein said of Soerensen. "But if we just slowed him down a little bit and do what we needed to do on our side of the net, that was the biggest focus. We have a ton of weapons on our side of the court throughout every position."
Weinstein was right. Soerensen did get his kills, 25 to be exact. They came from both outside positions in the front and across the back row. Parker Gosnell and Tymir Phillips completed the Bulldogs' hitting trifecta with another 25 combined kills.
Final recap: Meadville tops York Suburban 3-1 to claim PIAA Class 2A championship
York Suburban used a much more balanced attack, with five players recording at least five kills. It was a formula that served them well throughout the season.
On Saturday, the group combined for 36 kills, led by Weinstein's dozen.
The Trojans followed their game plan to a T in the first set. They attacked Meadville's libero and successfully threw the Bulldogs out of system.
"We were purposely trying to serve some seams based on our scouting report," Good said. "And I thought our block was really locked in in Set 1. They went away from that rotation in sets 2 and 3. In Set 4 we started to get a lot of good touches again."
The Trojans recorded 14 blocks in the final, led by four from Robert Berry. Zac Perryman, Josh Slade and Billy Doyle each added three blocks.
The Bulldogs made some adjustments after that first set, and it took the Trojans some time to recover. And as Meadville gained momentum, some cracks started to show on York Suburban's side.
Serves and hits sailed long.
Playing in a facility like Penn State's Rec Hall is a huge difference from the cozy confines of the Trojans' gym. With so much open space, it can be difficult to find the court boundaries. The Trojans prepared for that by practicing Friday at York Tech.
"We anticipated that," Good said of dealing with a larger gym. "York County School of Technology was kind enough to open their gym to us to give us a different look. We love our gym, but the walls make it easier to see the court versus a big space like this. It's a different ball game out there."
Interestingly, York Suburban has played in a different Penn State facility each of their three trips to the finals. They added Rec Hall to championships in the intramural building and Pegula Ice Arena.
Most of York Suburban's team played their last match in a Trojans uniform. But the cupboard isn't bare. Truett Miller and Robert Berry will headline a varsity team that can only benefit from this state final run.
"While our seniors are moving on, they're leaving behind a well-established program that had a very successful junior class," Good said. "And the sophomores and freshmen had a very successful JV season. We're very proud of this product behind us, but also what the future of York Suburban volleyball holds."
The Trojans had three goals at the beginning of the season. They wanted to win a league title (they finished second). They wanted a District 3 title (check). They wanted to reach the state final (check).
Two out of three is pretty darned good for the present and future of the York Suburban program.
Shelly Stallsmith covers York-Adams high school sports for GameTimePA and the USAToday Network. Connect with her by email [email protected] or on X, formerly known as Twitter @ShelStallsmith.
This article originally appeared on York Daily Record: Senior class put York Suburban boys volleyball back on track
Continue reading...
Meadville might have beaten York Suburban 3-1 in the PIAA Class 2A boys volleyball final at Penn State on June 13, but the Trojans have nothing to hang their heads about.
"There's a lot of really good people behind me," coach Oliver Good said from the Penn State media room. "This is an impressive group of student athletes. They are leaders in the school, leaders in their families. Our program, it's been a journey."
It was a journey seven seniors started three years ago. A journey to rebuild a program that went off the rails during the pandemic. The Trojans were coming off their second PIAA final appearance in 2019 when the 2020 season was wiped out.
"If you look back in our history in the past three years, most of the people behind us were playing on the varsity court," Good said. "As you can imagine, that didn't always go as smoothly as it did this season. We had some growing pains. We took some hard losses to teams we never lost to before."
You must be registered for see images
But the upperclassmen bought into the program, they committed themselves to rebuilding. And this year, they committed to playing nearly a month after graduation, while classmates were hitting the beach and getting on with their summers.
They won a District 3 title and cruised through the first three rounds of the state tournament to face the team that had been ranked No. 1 in the state throughout the season. A team that was powered by future Penn State volleyball player Luc Soerensen.
The Trojans came out firing on all cylinders in the first set, winning 25-21 before falling in the next three 21-25, 18-25, 20-25.
"We knew he was going to get his kills," York Suburban senior Trent Weinstein said of Soerensen. "But if we just slowed him down a little bit and do what we needed to do on our side of the net, that was the biggest focus. We have a ton of weapons on our side of the court throughout every position."
Weinstein was right. Soerensen did get his kills, 25 to be exact. They came from both outside positions in the front and across the back row. Parker Gosnell and Tymir Phillips completed the Bulldogs' hitting trifecta with another 25 combined kills.
Final recap: Meadville tops York Suburban 3-1 to claim PIAA Class 2A championship
You must be registered for see images
York Suburban used a much more balanced attack, with five players recording at least five kills. It was a formula that served them well throughout the season.
On Saturday, the group combined for 36 kills, led by Weinstein's dozen.
The Trojans followed their game plan to a T in the first set. They attacked Meadville's libero and successfully threw the Bulldogs out of system.
"We were purposely trying to serve some seams based on our scouting report," Good said. "And I thought our block was really locked in in Set 1. They went away from that rotation in sets 2 and 3. In Set 4 we started to get a lot of good touches again."
The Trojans recorded 14 blocks in the final, led by four from Robert Berry. Zac Perryman, Josh Slade and Billy Doyle each added three blocks.
The Bulldogs made some adjustments after that first set, and it took the Trojans some time to recover. And as Meadville gained momentum, some cracks started to show on York Suburban's side.
Serves and hits sailed long.
Playing in a facility like Penn State's Rec Hall is a huge difference from the cozy confines of the Trojans' gym. With so much open space, it can be difficult to find the court boundaries. The Trojans prepared for that by practicing Friday at York Tech.
You must be registered for see images attach
"We anticipated that," Good said of dealing with a larger gym. "York County School of Technology was kind enough to open their gym to us to give us a different look. We love our gym, but the walls make it easier to see the court versus a big space like this. It's a different ball game out there."
Interestingly, York Suburban has played in a different Penn State facility each of their three trips to the finals. They added Rec Hall to championships in the intramural building and Pegula Ice Arena.
Most of York Suburban's team played their last match in a Trojans uniform. But the cupboard isn't bare. Truett Miller and Robert Berry will headline a varsity team that can only benefit from this state final run.
"While our seniors are moving on, they're leaving behind a well-established program that had a very successful junior class," Good said. "And the sophomores and freshmen had a very successful JV season. We're very proud of this product behind us, but also what the future of York Suburban volleyball holds."
The Trojans had three goals at the beginning of the season. They wanted to win a league title (they finished second). They wanted a District 3 title (check). They wanted to reach the state final (check).
Two out of three is pretty darned good for the present and future of the York Suburban program.
Shelly Stallsmith covers York-Adams high school sports for GameTimePA and the USAToday Network. Connect with her by email [email protected] or on X, formerly known as Twitter @ShelStallsmith.
This article originally appeared on York Daily Record: Senior class put York Suburban boys volleyball back on track
Continue reading...
