Raiders' rallying cry
JACKSON TWP — An early Fox Chapel lead turned into a Seneca Valley victory, three times over.
The Foxes were unable to sustain an edge as the Raiders' boys volleyball team tallied a 3-0 sweep Monday night in a WPIAL Class AAA quarterfinal playoff match.
SV's victory came by scores of 25-16, 25-19 and 25-22.
The Raiders will face rival North Allegheny, a 3-0 winner over Plum, Wednesday in a semifinal match at a site and time to be determined.
The Foxes' leads in all three games soon became deficits as the Raiders showed little, if any rust after not playing for 12 days.
"We've run tough practices the whole season and the kids know that," said SV coach Josh Springer, whose team received a first-round bye. "We made sure they stayed sharp."
Fox Chapel (11-7) led 8-7 in the first game before SV reeled off five straight points for a 12-8 edge.
Later in the game, senior middle blocker Paul Kurlak helped the Raiders keep possession with a key block.
By the time Fox Chapel forced a sideout, the Raiders held a 23-15 lead.
"For us, it was all about maintaining confidence," said Springer, who watched his team split its two regular season matches with the Foxes. "Lineup versus lineup, we are the better team and our players just needed to be reminded of that."
Game 2 had the Foxes jumping out to a 10-6 lead, but in the span of two possessions, the Raiders scored 10 points to take a 17-11 advantage.
Meanwhile, the Foxes struggled to maintain control, scoring just three points on their own serves in the final six possessions.
"Even after it was 2-0, I thought, OK, we can win three straight off of this team," said veteran Fox Chapel coach Phil O'Keefe. "But we just shot ourselves in the foot too many times tonight.
"We'd have momentum on our side, but then lose it with a serve into the net or whatever," he added. "We were just flat."
The third game was the most competitive, with the Foxes pulling to within 23-21 before SV's Alex Muckle came up with two huge kills to help seal the win.
Muckle led the Raiders with 11 kills, while Nate Steele had six.
Fox Chapel outside hitter Dan Tublin led his team with 10 kills.
With North Allegheny standing between his players and a spot in the WPIAL title match, Springer is confident they will be mentally ready for Wednesday's match.
"We beat NA, 3-1 earlier this season and that's the only blemish on their record," he said. "They're out to get us and we're going to have to play them tough, but I know our kids will be OK."
