Golden Panthers down Vikings in Dig Pink game
ROYERSFORD >> With an electrified gymnasium saturated in pink, you couldn’t hear yourself think.
It was bedlam from beginning to end at Pope John Paul II’s house Tuesday night as the two marquee girls volleyball teams in the PAC-10, the Panthers and Perkiomen Valley, went at it with the gusto you would expect. The performance and grit of both squads rose to the decibel level, and in a fitting fifth game, it was the defending PAC-10 champion Panthers who came out on top, 15-12.
PJP, which avenged an earlier loss to Perkiomen Valley, started the night with a 25-12 win, lost the next two, 25-18 and 25-15, and took Game 4 25-14. Both teams now have one conference loss. For PJP (8-1 in the PAC-10, 12-1 overall), it was the Panthers’ regular-season league finale, while Perk Valley (6-1, 15-2) has to win out in its final league games to share the conference crown.
“They’re a very tough team,” PJP coach Ryan Sell said of Perk Valley. “During timeouts we said every point is going to be a grind; you’re going to have to work.”
PJP’s gym was packed for a breast cancer awareness night. Perk Valley brought a spirited student section that added to the volume. Both sides had a lot to cheer about as the momentum swung back and forth.
“We knew coming in it could go either way,” said Perkiomen Valley coach Drew Scheeler. “To their credit they came out hard. Our girls matched them the next couple of games. You’ve got to be happy with the way the match was played. Today was a great day for volleyball, with the ‘Dig Pink’ and all the money raised, you’ve got to be happy.”
Rhode Island-bound Cayla Veverka, the Perkiomen Valley star who this season surpassed 1,000 career kills, had 18 Tuesday night. Also for the Vikings, Caitlin Corcoran added nine kills, Ellie Min distributed 41 assists and Emilia Leyes had 23 digs.
PJP was led by Myah Cordrey’s 15 kills and six aces, the 11 kills each from Mary Kate Mooney and Alana Pergine, the 22 digs from Alyssa Cianciulli and the 40 assists by Hayley Wusinich.
“We have a lot of good friends on that team,” Mooney said of Perkiomen Valley, “but it definitely felt good to beat them.”
“This was going to decide if we’re PAC-10 champs or not, so it really felt good to win,” Cordrey said. “They’re really good. They’re front row is really tall and really good, so we had to play smart.”
The deciding game was the closest from start to finish, neither team having more than a two-point advantage until a PJP surge at the end. With the Panthers leading 13-11, their next serve initially was ruled out, then reversed, giving them a three-point lead. After another powerful spike by Veverka, PJP went on to take match point on a PV service fault.
After winning the first game decisively with Mooney taking front and center (six kills), PJP was on the ropes a bit as PV took control in games 2 and 3. Down 13-9, the Vikings roared back in game 2 as Veverka, Min and Corcoran keyed a 12-3 run. PJP was plagued by some mis-hits and errors late in game 2.
It appeared PV’s oft-dominant front line might rule the night given the way the Vikings started in game 3, jumping to leads of 4-0 and 13-8. Veverka, Emily Oltman, Corcoran and Leyes helped finish that game off.
Down two games to one, the Panthers had to reach deep.
“We really tried to pick up our energy,” Mooney said of game 4, adding that the teams are evenly matched.
PJP started finding some open areas in the middle and back of the PV lines and placed some good balls for points.
“We spent a lot of time scouting and watching tape of them, and the girls executed,” Sell said. “We knew we’d have to be smart,” he added, having respect for the length and talent of PV’s big ball-strikers.
In game 4, PJP took a 13-8 lead, compacting the net on defense, getting to the ball quickly for digs and finding openings for spikes and touch-spikes. Pergine was integral in the middle portion of the game as the Panthers blew it open to an eight-point cushion.
PV had its last lead in game 5 at 11-10 on Helena Clauhs’ ace. From there, a re-directed ball past blockers and a block gave the Panthers just enough of an edge to close it out.
“It was really loud, it was really intense. You had to really focus on what you’re doing,” Cordrey smiled.
