JACKSON TWP — School might be on hold for students in the Seneca Valley School District, but four of the high school's fall sports teams are still going strong:

• The girls volleyball team faces Upper St. Clair in the WPIAL semifinals tonight.

• The football team hosts Bethel Park in a WPIAL first-round playoff game Friday night.

• The girls soccer team plays Upper St. Clair in the WPIAL finals on Saturday.

• The boys cross country team is headed to the PIAA finals Saturday in Hershey.

It seems as though the current teachers strike is having no negative effects on members of the four teams.

"I like it this way, just showing up and playing football," said Shaine Patsilevas, a senior safety. "And I think most of my teammates would say the same."

"I think the players know that the strike is out of their control," said girls soccer coach Dave Sylvester. "What is in their control is what happens on the field."

"It was kind of hard to get used to the different routine, not going to school each day," said Lauren Royal, a junior midfielder for the girls soccer team. "But we do get more rest because we don't have to worry about homework or getting up for school."

A mediator is scheduled to meet with both the teachers and school board on Monday.

But until the matter is resolved, football coach Ron Butschle's focus will be to keep things as normal as possible for his players.

"We have practice at the same time," he said. "And we've really made a conscious effort not to talk about the strike."

"I've been with the (football) program seven of the last eight years," said Jim Lucot, who coaches the offensive line and teaches American history at SV High. "I've always told the kids that I will tell them the truth. Back in August, I told them that if the strike happens, it will be business as usual. And it has been."

"Everybody around here is aware of the situation," Butschle said. "It's unfortunate, but inside the locker room and on the field, we do not talk about (the strike) at all."

Fan support of the teams remains strong, and, if anything, has grown since the strike began Oct. 15.

"The fans have been unbelievable," said Patsilevas. "It's unreal how they've come to every game and I expect it to be even bigger with Friday's playoff game."

Volleyball coach Karen Martini and her squad showed up at North Hills' Martorelli Stadium to cheer on the girls soccer team Tuesday night.

The soccer game began at 6:15 p.m. The volleyball team was scheduled to play at North Hills High School, two miles away, at 7:30 p.m.

"We could only stay for about 30 minutes, but we were there to cheer the girls on," said Martini. "Then, in the middle of our playoff match, the girls soccer team walks in to cheer us on. Their game had just finished and they showed up for us. And I know both teams are planning to show up for the football team on Friday.

"It's almost as if the kids are saying, 'OK, we're going through this together and we're going to support each other,'" added Martini.

Still, the teams are not experiencing the festive atmosphere that accompanies a high school sports team as it makes its run through the district and state playoffs, things like banners in the hallways and pep rallies in the gymnasium.

"There's one thing that I've given a lot of thought to," Butschle said. "When our seniors were sophomores, they were 1-9. As juniors last year, they were 3-6. Aside from the losing records, there's been a certain degree of embarrassment.

"They are missing out on the opportunity to maybe walk around school with their chest out a bit because they've finally turned it around."