Raiders defeated by Bethel
ROSS TWP — It's been a bugaboo for the Seneca Valley boys volleyball team all season.
And it reared its ugly head again Tuesday night in the WPIAL Class AAA semifinal against Bethel Park.
“Our conversation all season has been on passing,” said Seneca Valley coach Karen Martini.
The Raiders struggled to set up their offense throughout the match against the Hawks and were swept 25-17, 25-17, 25-18 at North Hills.
“We didn't get one of our big hitters engaged right away,” Martini said. “When you do that, you're just kind of banging your head against the wall.”
Bethel Park was banging the ball against the court.
Junior outside hitter Max Cooley had 15 kills, but plenty of other Hawks contributed.
“That balance makes us hard to game-plan against,” said Bethel Park coach Zach Smith. “We have a number of guys who can be a force for us. They all work hard.”
Bethel Park jumped out to big leads in all three sets.
Seneca Valley only had a two-point lead twice — and that was 2-0 in both the second and third sets.
The Hawks quickly responded to both SV starts.
The Raiders only got as close as 18-16 in the first set, but Bethel Park rolled off seven of the next eight points.
“It depends on the team, but we've been good at getting leads,” Smith said. “That's important, especially against a good team like Seneca Valley.”
Kyle Martini had 12 kills to lead the Raiders.
Falling behind in all three sets was a symptom of youth, Martini said.
“That's our inexperience,” Karen Martini said. “We're rebuilding. But hats off for doing a tremendous job getting this far,” the coach added. “I think a lot of people doubted we'd get this far, but we didn't.”
Despite the loss, Seneca Valley is still alive for a state playoff berth.
The Raiders will play Butler Thursday in a 6 p.m. consolation game at Baldwin with the winner advancing to the PIAA postseason.
Butler dropped a 3-0 decision to unbeaten North Allegheny in the other Class 3A semifinal Tuesday night.
“It's the hardest match for me to coach anytime to lose a big match and get them regrouped and refocused for the next one,” Coach Martini said. “If we can't win this championship, let's win the next one. You never know what could happen.”
