Schedule

June 4, 2025

Boys Volleyball

Saegertown falls to Shaler in PIAA match

MEADVILLE TRIBUNE

MILLVALE — The Saegertown boys volleyball team saw its season come to an end in Tuesday’s PIAA first round matchup at Shaler High School.

Shaler swept the Panthers 3-0 (25-21, 25-9, 27-25).

Jackson Scott dished 18 assists. Cru Scott led the attack with nine kills and Mason Allio added five.

Saegertown ended its season 12-4 overall. The Panthers had no seniors on the roster and will return all its starters next spring.

Shaler, the District 7 champion, will play Brandywine Heights in the quarterfinals on Saturday.

May 29, 2025

Boys Volleyball

Defending the crown

Bulldogs defend title in sweep vs. Panthers

By Alex Topor

MEADVILLE TRIBUNE

With Meadville’s 3-0 sweep (27-25, 25-10, 25-12) in Wednesday’s District 10 championship match at Allegheny College, the Meadville Bulldogs won their second straight district title and will host a state playoff game on Tuesday.

“It means our hard work throughout the season really paid off. It’s one of a kind. Looking back, I’m 14-years-old freshman year, I never thought three District 10 championships in four years, but here we are,” senior Ben Fiely said. “It came to fruition and all our hard work paid off. It’s an honor. We knew they were going to give us their best match like every team we face gives us their best game.”

Saegertown gave Meadville just all about the Bulldogs could handle in the opening set. Meadville held a slim lead for much of the set, but could never pull away. The teams tied at 14 before a Bulldogs’ run saw Meadville up 19-16.

The Panthers dug in and rallied to lead 23-22. Big kills from Cru Scott and Jackson Scott, as well as a block from Jackson Scott, were crucial in the run. Down one, Meadville head coach Nick Bancroft called a timeout to reset his team.

“Saegertown is a good team. They gave us their best game and they served us tough, passed well, sided-out. They have some nice weapons and distributed the ball very well,” Bancroft said. “They played a good game. We didn’t necessarily play a terrible game, but they forced our hand in some situations and did a nice job.”

Fresh out of the timeout, junior all-state outside hitter Parker Gosnell buried a kill to tie the set. Xander Brauen pushed Saegertown ahead 24-23 for set-point, but Gosnell had back-to- back monster slams to take the lead. Saegertown’s Mason Allio tied it at 25, but Meadville setter Max Decker caught the defense off guard for a kill. A Saegertown hitting error was the set-winner.

“Anytime you lose one that close, especially against a team you haven’t beaten very often, you think ‘Man, we let that one slip through our fingers,” Saegertown head coach Justin Johnson said. “But that’s the way it goes.”

After the first set, Meadville dominated the game. The Bulldogs led 14-4 en route to a 25-10 second-set win. The third was more of the same. Once the ‘Dogs gained a lead, the offense went to town with the myriad of weapons in their arsenal.

“Through the entire first set we were talking about things we needed to do better. I thought in sets two and three we won the serving and passing game. In set one we did not,” Bancroft said. “Once we got that calmed down we could run our offense more effectively. Then when you get a bit of a lead you can play more aggressive like we did. Parker, Tymir (Phillips) and Luc (Soerensen) can start teeing off on some balls. Evan (Peterson) did a nice job, Kellen (Ball) too. We have a lot of weapons.”

Meadville moved to 16-0 on the year with the win. It was the third D-10 championship for the team’s two seniors — Ball and Fiely. Both middle hitters rotate with Phillips and see plenty of time in the rotation.

“Last year as a junior I didn’t feel a sense of urgency because I had another year,” Ball said. “Now that this is my last year I feel like I appreciate all the guys I’ve been playing with so it feels nice to win it one last time.”

Following the trophy ceremony, Meadville got to celebrate with numerous alumni in attendance, as well as the hometown crowd.

“It’s so much fun. Since I’ve been coaching here we’ve had great fan support and that’s awesome,” Bancroft said. “People are always here cheering us on. When games get tough it’s nice to have that crowd in the background when you get a big kill to sway that momentum.”

The win was Meadville’s 37th consecutive win. The ‘Dogs haven’t lost since 2023 in the D-10 playoffs.

“They continue to put in hard work and they are a great group of guys. It’s special because they worked hard for it,” Bancroft said. “They’re talented, they’re athletic, they’re good volleyball players, but they worked to become a team and it’s a great accomplishment for them.”

Meadville will host South Fayette on Tuesday in the first round of the PIAA tournament.

Saegertown’s Cru Scott and Allio each had six kills. Jackson Scott dished 19 assists.

In the first set, the Panthers’ offense was operating well and they were handling Meadville’s serves, which was key to their success, Johnson said.

“Our ball control was very good in the first set. We started out a little shaky with our passes, but we settled in nice. They missed a few serves. We were able to run a nice attack and run everything within the 10-foot line,” Johnson said. “We were really clicking. Moving on from that, people always talk about the hitting and that Meadville is a great hitting team — and they are. They have great athletes, they’re tall, they’re big and they can hit the ball.

“But their serving is where they make their money. They served us off the floor the last two sets. When we were able to pass the ball they had a tough time stopping us.”

Saegertown also moves on. The Panthers will play at Shaler on Tuesday, who won the WPIAL tournament this year and won the Class 3A state tournament in 2024.

“We have to go see Shaler and they won the triple-A state championship last year. We know they’re a good team, we’ve played them,” Johnson said. “Anything is possible this time of year. If we play like we’re capable of playing we will go down there and give them a match for sure.”

May 28, 2025

Boys Volleyball

D-10 showdown

Bulldogs, Panthers duke it out for District 10 gold

By Alex Topor

MEADVILLE TRIBUNE

Saegertown will attempt to knock off top-ranked Meadville in today’s District 10 boys volleyball championship match at Allegheny College at 7 p.m.

Meadville swept Saegertown in both regular season matchups. The Bulldogs are ranked No. 1 in the latest poll from the Pennsylvania Volleyball Coaches Association and have occupied that spot all season.

Despite Meadville’s undefeated record (15-0), Saegertown head coach Justin Johnson wants his players to remember that the Bulldogs are high school kids too.

“I think they just have to realize something. Everyone looks at Meadville and thinks ‘Man, those guys are like invincible,’ but they’re just kids like we have. Everybody is just a kid,” Johnson said. “It’s getting toward the end of the school year. Some people might be stressed out about graduation or this or that. They all have the same things going on in their lives.

“Hopefully, we can realize they’re not 23-year-old professional volleyball players, but they’re 15, 16-year-old kids like we are. I think that’s the most important message.”

Saegertown (12-3) beat Conneaut 3-1 on Thursday in the D-10 semifinals. In the win, sophomore Cru Scott exploded with 30 kills and 15 digs. Jackson Scott dished 49 assists with 11 kills while Josh Weaver added 12 kills at middle hitter.

The Panthers are ranked No. 7 by the PVCA and their only losses are to Meadville, twice, and Conneaut once 3-2.

“We are going to have to serve way better than what we did on Thursday. We missed too many. That’s a key to get them out of system. Their biggest asset is their size,” Johnson said. “They don’t always need a perfect pass to get a good attack. We need to get them out of system as much as we can. I’d like to see us push them and see what can happen.

“We could take a set and see what happens. They haven’t been put in that position a whole lot. We’ll be ready to go.”

Meadville will attempt to defend its District 10 title, which the ‘Dogs won 3-1 against Saegertown last year at Allegheny College. The Bulldogs are also attempting to defend their state championship and are led by all-state juniors Luc Soerensen, Tymir Phillips and Parker Gosnell.

To win and defend their title, Meadville head coach Nick Bancroft wants his team to minimize errors and limit Saegertown’s Cru Scott.

“We need to minimize our errors and make them earn all of their points. They run their offense through their pins,” Bancroft said. “We need to slow down Cru and make sure the other players don’t get easy points on us. They come out the gates fast and play with lots of intensity. We need to weather the storm and not let them build momentum.”

Both teams will advance to the PIAA playoffs. The winner will host the third seed from District 7. The loser will play at the District 7 champion. The first round of the state playoffs is Tuesday.

May 23, 2025

Boys Volleyball

District championship bound

Panthers hold off Eagles 3-1 in semifinal round

By Alex Topor

MEADVILLE TRIBUNE

The fourth set between Conneaut and Saegertown went right down to the wire on Thursday at Allegheny College, but the Panthers held on for a 3-1 (25-22, 22-25, 25-23, 25-21) win in the District 10 Class 2A semifinal match.

The teams split their regular season series and were the second and third seeds in the bracket. The competitiveness was evident at the David V. Wise Center. Both teams played excellent defense, which included players diving into the scorers table and falling into each other to keep plays alive.

Saegertown led 18-12 in the the fourth set with a 2-1 lead in the match, but the Eagles battled back. Saegertown made a couple errors before Conneaut’s Iziaha Lawrence had back-to-back kills to trail 21-19. Two Panthers’ errors nearly tied it 22-21.

Saegertown’s Xander Brauen connected on a big swing before Mason Allio powered one off Conneaut’s fingertips for match-point. With the game on the line, sophomore setter Jackson Scott found a soft spot in the corner of the court for the winning point on a tip.

“I think both sides of the net played really good defense,” Saegertown head coach Justin Johnson said. “We were able to get some swings off our defense in the last few points when they scrambled around a little bit and gave us a couple free balls. I thought both teams played really nice defense tonight and were getting after it.”

The Panthers won a tightly-contested third set 25-23. Saegertown led 17-12, but Conneaut didn’t give up. The Eagles rallied and trailed 24-23. Allio had a good attack and forced a Conneaut error for the set-winner.

“With scores for each set differing by four points or less, I think the difference was Saegertown capitalized on a few opportunities where we came up short. Both teams put up good fights, and they simply came out on top,” Conneaut assistant coach Jennifer Klink said. “I think it was anyone’s match to win as evidenced by the close scores. Saegertown was able to put together a few more plays and take advantage of some openings to push for those last few points before we could get there.”

Conneaut led for much of the first and second sets. Middle hitter Alex O’Grady was a force inside for Conneaut and helped the Eagles build leads.

A 6-3 Saegertown run to close the first set was capped off by Cru Scott’s slam. The Eagles hung on in the second set with senior Charlie Woods converting on the winner.

Saegertown sophomore Cru Scott led the Panthers with 30 kills and added 15 digs. Jackson Scott tallied 49 assists, 11 kills and nine digs. Josh Weaver had 12 kills, four blocks and four digs while Allio added 10 digs. Westin Baker paced the defense with 19 digs and Brauen chipped in seven kills.

“I’ve seen us run smoother than tonight because I didn’t think we passed particularly great. But we got some good stuff out of it and got some good swings,” Johnson said. “We got some good tips too. That’s one thing we were trying to work on is tipping the ball a little bit more. It seemed to be effective, then they started to pick it up so we took some swings and kept them back on their heels.”

Conneaut ended its season 10-6 overall. The Eagles earned their first postseason win in program history on Tuesday and graduate three seniors — Woods, Sam Williams and Joe Furgiuele.

“Going into the match, we told the boys to leave everything on the court because no matter the outcome, they had already taken our program to new heights,” Klink said. “The message after the match was no different. Any postseason loss is tough, but the boys should be proud of their efforts tonight and of the work they did every step of the way this season.”

Saegertown moves to 12-3 on the year and will face Meadville for the District 10 crown next Wednesday. The top two seeds from District 10 advance to the state playoffs, so the Panthers are guaranteed at least two more matches.

“It means a lot to make it. We have a young team. Everyone is coming back next year because we don’t have a senior,” Johnson said. “For us to get the experience of playing in the championship game then hopefully playing in a match or more matches is big. The more we can play this time of year the less jitters they will have coming back next year. Then hopefully we can improve on what we did this year. So that’s huge for us to play a few more games here.”

May 16, 2025

Boys Volleyball

Panthers sweep Tigers

SAEGERTOWN — The Saegertown boys volleyball team swept Maplewood 3-0 (25-14, 25-17, 25-22) on Thursday at Steve Scott Gymnasium.

Jackson Scott dished 18 assists. Josh Weaver and Ryder Bailey each had five kills for Saegertown. Cru Scott added nine digs. Saegertown ended the regular season 11-3 overall and 7-2 in region games.

May 14, 2025

Boys Volleyball

Dominant ‘Dogs

Bulldogs lock up region title on senior night

By Alex Topor

MEADVILLE TRIBUNE

Meadville was dominant for most of Tuesday’s region match against Saegertown and won 3-0 (25-14, 25-14, 2518) to clinch the region title at the House of Thrills.

The Bulldogs dominated the first two sets by snagging early leads and never letting go. Meadville’s offense was efficient with Max Decker and Tate Walker rotating at setter.

Defensively, the ‘Dogs were stout at the net and didn’t let Saegertown get comfortable.

“We really struggled passing the ball and that took the wind out of our sails. We struggled at the net too, missing blocking assignments and things like that,” Saegertown head coach Justin Johnson said. “I thought we settled down and played decent in the third set — we passed the ball a lot better. I was expecting a little tighter match, but it wasn’t the way it happened.

Saegertown got out to a hot start in the third set with leads of 6-3 and 9-6. As the set progressed, the Bulldogs settled back into the flow of their offense and took their first lead at 12-11. Meadville didn’t give up its lead and finished the set on a 8-2 run to claim the match. A couple Saegertown hitting errors helped spark the big run, and Meadville junior Parker Gosnell buried the final point of the match, one of his six kills.

“Overall, we played pretty well. All aspects of it,” Meadville head coach Nick Bancroft said. “I feel like sometimes our offense needs to not give so many second chances, but that is still coming. Max is still working on his connection with the guys and running a fast-tempo offense. Overall, there are a lot of things we did well tonight that we’re happy about.”

Tymir Phillips and Evan Peterson each finished with six kills for Meadville. Luc Soerensen had five kills and four aces. Decker and Walker combined to dish 30 assists.

Seniors Kellen Ball and Ben Fiely were each honored on senior night before the match. Both are middle hitters and saw plenty of action.

“They’re really great guys that work hard and they’re leaders. That’s what they are and have been since they came here,” Bancroft said. “Both of them have been in and out of our lineup since they were sophomores. They’ve been a big staple for us, so we are happy to honor them tonight.”

Meadville is 13-0 on the year and 8-0 in region play. The ‘Dogs will conclude the regular season today at The Bird Cage against Cochranton.

Saegertown is 10-3 overall and 6-2 in the region. The Panthers lost to Meadville in both regular season matches this season.

“I think right now we need to focus on beating Maplewood on Thursday. It’s a huge match for us because if we can win that we’ll be the second seed. I am not even worried about playing them (Meadville) again,” Johnson said. “We need to win first to get back and play them again. It’s not a foregone conclusion that we can do that. We will cross that bridge when we get there.”

Jackson Scott dished 15 assists and added 10 digs for Saegertown. Cru Scott led the offense with 10 kills and Westin Baker had nine digs.

Saegertown was ranked No. 7 in the latest poll from the Pennsylvania Volleyball Coaches Association, but have lost two straight matches.

“We are up and down still. We play well for a set or two then it seems like we lose it. I’m just hoping it all comes together here, young team and all that,” Johnson said. “Hopefully we can put something together and make a run in the postseason. Get out of this district and hopefully win a couple matches, whether we’re the champion or the runner-up. But we have a lot of work to do before we get to that point.”

May 9, 2025

Boys Volleyball

Eagles win in five

LINESVILLE — The Conneaut boys volleyball team beat Saegertown 3-2 (20-25, 22-25, 25-22, 26-24, 18-16) on Thursday.

Saegertown’s Cru Scott and Mason Allio had 16 and 13 kills, respectively. Jackson Scott dished 38 assists.

Conneaut’s Alex O’Grady and Charlie Woods had 16 and 12 kills, respectively. Owen Moore dished 39 assists. O’Grady had nine blocks.

May 2, 2025

Boys Volleyball

Intense back-and-forth

Panthers sweep Trojans in competitive rematch

By Alex Topor

MEADVILLE TRIBUNE

SAEGERTOWN — Saegertown and McDowell went back-and-forth for three competitive sets, with the Panthers besting the Trojans 3-0 (25-22, 26-24, 25-20) at Steve Scott Gymnasium on Thursday.

It was the second win over McDowell this week for the Panthers and head coach Justin Johnson. Saegertown beat McDowell 3-1 on Monday on the road.

The first set was just about as back and forth as a set can be. Saegertown’s lead never grew beyond three points and neither team took a timeout throughout the entire set.

Both teams were efficient and kept errors to a minimum. The Trojans took their first lead of the set 20-19, but a Mason Allio kill and a Trojans’ hitting error pushed Saegertown up 21-20. Three McDowell errors set up set-point, which Cru Scott buried into McDowell’s backline for the win.

“We played really well tonight. We’ve been kind of in a lull the past couple of weeks and I didn’t think we’ve been playing that well. Even Monday night when we played them I didn’t think we played well even though we won,” Johnson said. “Tonight, I thought we put it all together. Both teams played well tonight, it was a good match. It was an intense match. There was a lot of cheering and maybe a little bit of smack talk and all that good stuff. That’s what you need. That’s what you’ll face in a month when you’re playing some teams. So it’s good to have a match like that.”

The second set played out much the same as the first. Except when Saegertown led 21-18, the Trojans made a run. McDowell tied the set at 23 and 24.

A Xander Brauen kill made it set-point and Allio hammered the set-winner for the Panthers.

Saegertown grew its lead in the third set to as many as seven and the Panthers stayed at least three points ahead the rest of the way.

Jackson Scott tallied 23 assists and four kills. Scott and Allio had nine and seven kills, respectively.

Westin Baker paced the defense with 13 digs and Cru Scott added 10.

Saegertown moved to 10-1 overall and 6-0 in region matches.

“We have three matches left. We go to CASH next Thursday. That’s a tough one, they’re a good team. Then we have Meadville and Maplewood to round out the season,” Johnson said. “We also go to the Shaler Tournament. We have a lot of volleyball left to play and if we keep getting better we will be a tough out.”

April 30, 2025

Boys Volleyball

Panthers sweep Orioles

ROCKY GROVE — Saegertown boys volleyball swept Rocky Grove 3-0 (25-14, 2522, 25-19) in a region match on Tuesday.

Jackson Scott dished 22 assists. Josh Weaver and Cru Scott added eight kills.

Saegertown is 9-1 overall and 5-0 in region action. The Panthers will host McDowell on Thursday.

On Monday, Saegertown defeated McDowell 3-1 (25-17, 18-25, 25-20, 25-18).

April 23, 2025

Boys Volleyball

Saegertown sweeps Bison

SAEGERTOWN — Saegertown swept Fort LeBoeuf 3-0 (25-19, 25-19, 25-8) on Tuesday in a boys volleyball match.

Jackson Scott dished 20 assists and added nine kills. Cru Scott had nine kills and Westin Baker added 14 digs.

Saegertown is 7-1 overall and 4-0 in region games. The Panthers will play at McDowell on Thursday.

April 16, 2025

Boys Volleyball

Panthers sweep Cardinals

COCHRANTON — Saegertown swept Cochranton 3-0 (25-13, 25-23, 25-17) in a region volleyball match on Tuesday.

Saegertown’s Jackson Scott dished 25 assists. Cru Scott led the attack with 12 kills. Westin Baker tallied 14 digs and Mason Allio had eight digs and kills.

The Panthers are 6-1 overall and 3-0 in the region. They will play at McDowell on Friday.

Brady Rynd had 14 kills and 11 digs for Cochranton. Evan King had 22 assists while CJ Shorts added nine digs and six kills.

Cochranton fell to 1-4 overall and 0-2 in region action. The Cardinals will play at Meadville on Thursday.

April 11, 2025

Boys Volleyball

Panthers sweep Lakers at home in region match

MEADVILLE TRIBUNE

SAEGERTOWN — The Saegertown boys volleyball team swept Mercyhurst Prep 3-0 (25-15, 25-12, 25-23) in a region match at Steve Scott Gymnasium on Thursday.

The win pushed the Panthers to 2-0 in region play and 5-1 overall.

Cru Scott tallied 12 kills and 10 digs. Jackson Scott dished 16 assists and Mason Allio had 11 digs.

Saegertown will play at Cochranton on Tuesday.

April 9, 2025

Boys Volleyball

Panthers sweep Blue Devils

CAMBRIDGE SPRINGS — Saegertown defeated Cambridge Springs 3-0 (25-23, 2513, 25-10) in a boys volleyball region match at The Devils Den on Tuesday.

Jackson Scott dished 20 assists and added five kills and five blocks. Mason Allio recorded seven aces and Cru Scott led the attack with nine kills. Josh Weaver and Ryder Bailey each added five kills.

Saegertown is 4-1 overall and 1-0 in the region. The Panthers will host Mercyhurst Prep on Thursday.

April 3, 2025

Boys Volleyball

Saegertown tops Cochranton in four

MEADVILLE TRIBUNE

SAEGERTOWN — Saegertown defeated Cochranton 3-1 (23-25, 25-15, 25-23, 25-15) in a boys volleyball contest at Steve Scott Gymnasium on Wednesday.

Sophomore Jackson Scott dished 41 assists for Saegertown. Cru Scott led the offense with 19 kills. Josh Weaver and Max Leytrick added eight and seven kills, respectively. Westin Baker had 15 digs.

Saegertown is 3-1 and will play at Cambridge Springs on Tuesday.

Cochranton’s Evan King had 28 assists. CJ Shorts tallied 11 digs, seven kills and four aces while Brady Rynd had 14 kills and eight digs.

Cochranton is 1-2 and will host Fort LeBoeuf on Tuesday.

April 2, 2025

Boys Volleyball

Tough competition

Bulldogs sweep Panthers in District 10 heavyweight matchup

By Alex Topor

MEADVILLE TRIBUNE

SAEGERTOWN — In a District 10 championship rematch and matchup of top 10 teams in the state, Meadville swept Saegertown 3-0 (25-21, 25-15, 25-13) on Tuesday at Steve Scott Gymnasium.

Meadville, ranked No. 1 in the state by Pennsylvania Volleyball Coaches Association, wasn’t sharp early. The Bulldogs had several service errors in the early going, but so did Saegertown, which is ranked No. 7 in the state. Once things cooled down at the service line, Meadville went on a 7-2 run and led 1912 in the first set.

After a Saegertown timeout, the Panthers mounted a rally of their own and cut Meadville’s lead to 22-20. However, the Panthers ran out of steam. Meadville’s Tymir Phillips and Luc Soerensen slammed the door shut with a block and a big spike to end the set.

“I thought at times we played very well. We just made too many ball-handling errors and we can’t afford to do that against them because we’re gonna get blocked and they will have bigger hits than us,” Saegertown head coach Justin Johnson said. “We just don’t have the size to match up with them. We have to be able to take care of the ball if we want to get closer to beating them or beat them.”

Meadville controlled the second set after going up 10-5. Soerensen and Phillips were tough to slow down with their eye-popping verticals. When they weren’t getting the ball, Parker Gosnell and Evan Peterson put the ball away for the ‘Dogs.

The Bulldogs led 20-11 late in the second and ended with a 25-15 win for a 2-0 lead in the match.

“They did a nice job. We had two good tournaments so far and are playing at a good level. We obviously have lots of things to continue to get better at and that’s our goal,” Meadville head coach Nick Bancroft said. “We had a lot of missed serves, so we will go work on that, but otherwise I am pretty happy with what they did overall. We’re working in the right direction.”

Saegertown didn’t back down in the third set and trailed 11-9 after a couple Meadville service errors. That was as close as the Panthers got, Meadville ended the set on a 14-4 run.

“I thought we stayed aggressive for the most part all night. We were taking swings and trying to make some things happen,” Johnson said. “You have to be aggressive against them. You can’t just give them the ball on a platter and say what can you do with it. They won’t make an error and they will pound it down your throat.”

Cru Scott led Saegertown with seven kills. Josh Weaver and Mason Allio each added four kills. Jackson Scott had 18 assists and Westin Baker led the defense with nine digs.

Saegertown moved to 1-1 on the year. The Panthers will host Cochranton today at 7 p.m.

With one regular season game left versus Meadville and a potential playoff game, what does Johnson think the formula is for his Panthers to take down the defending state champs?

“I think our thing is we have to be a ball-control team and control the ball better than they do. We have to pass the ball on the money every time. I thought we did a really good job defensively. We just have to constantly be on the attack against them,” Johnson said. “We can’t have free balls over the net because we had a bad first-contact. We have to have all four hitting options to keep them on their toes. At times when we gave up four or five points in a row tonight, we didn’t do that.”

Meadville moved to 2-0 on the year. Soerensen had 14 kills and three blocks. Phillips added eight kills with Gosnell and Peterson each adding five. Tate Walker dished 30 assists and Landon Carter had 10 digs.

“Offensively I thought when we were in system we were pretty smooth. I thought our pins did a nice job,” Bancroft said. “We didn’t get enough to the middle, we did not serve-receive well, did not serve well, could have played better defense, but we ran a good in system offense.”

The ‘Dogs are set to host Rocky Grove on Tuesday.

April 2, 2025

Boys Volleyball

Area volleyball teams poised for more success in 2025

By Alex Topor

MEADVILLE TRIBUNE

Boys volleyball in Crawford County is always some of the best quality in the state. That rang true last season and should continue this spring.

In 2024, seven locals made the Pennsylvania Volleyball Coaches Association All-State team and 16 made the District 10 All-Region teams. Meadville, the state champion, and Saegertown, the District 10 runner-up, each spent the season in the PVCA’s top 10 poll.

This year, three of the seven allstaters return, all of which play for the Bulldogs. Six of the 16 all-region selections are back. Despite the loss due to graduation, local teams will reload and battle for a D-10 title in May. The district champion and runner-up will advance to the PIAA playoffs.

Meadville

The Meadville Bulldogs returned to the mountaintop in 2024 with an undefeated record and a PIAA Class 2A championship.

Though several key contributors from that team graduated, the ‘Dogs return a bevy of talent.

“We are trying to focus on ourselves right now. We have some guys playing in different roles and we are really just trying to get the rust off,” Meadville head coach Nick Bancroft said. “We have a nice crew returning which keeps our practices competitive and intense. We bring back a lot of experienced players.”

Gone from last year’s team are Alex Burgess, Angelo Mangine, Jacob Graham, Jack Brown, Luca White and Kyle Peterson. Brown was a second- team all-state setter and is now playing for Mount Union. Graham was an all-region libero and White logged a lot of minutes on the back line.

Returning is all-state middle hitter Tymir Phillips and all-state outside hitters Luc Soerensen and Parker Gosnell. All three are juniors.

“Luc, Tymir, and Parker were all first-team all-state selections and will look to lead our offense. Evan Peterson, Kellen Ball, Ben Fiely, and Brennan Decker also look to contribute offensively,” Bancroft said. “Max Decker and Tate Walker will be taking over for Jack at the setting position.

“Landon Carter looks to take control of the defense side as our libero. Our newcomers are working hard and benefiting from being around these older guys.”

Meadville opened the season ranked No. 1 in the preseason PVCA poll. The Bulldogs opened their schedule with a 3-1 win at Seneca Valley, ranked No. 4 in Class 3A.

The Bulldogs won the recent Meadville Tournament. The ‘Dogs finished pool play 10-0 and won the gold bracket. Meadville did not drop a set all day.

Saegertown

After several years of early District 10 playoff exits, the Saegertown Panthers finally got over the hump and played for a district title in 2024. Saegertown advanced to the PIAA playoffs and ended its season 14-4. All-state outside hitters Sam Draa and Collin Jones graduated, as well as starters Grant Anthony and Cody Huson.

Returning is all-region setter Jackson Scott, a sophomore, and all-region libero, junior Mason Allio.

“We are excited about this team this year. We are young,” head coach Justin Johnson said. “We don’t have a senior and lost four starters from last year that were big contributors. But we also return some experience. (Josh) Weaver, (Jackson) Scott, (Mason) Allio, and (Westin) Baker all played big roles in our run last year. We are looking for their experience to get us back there and hopefully further than last year.”

Johnson expects his backcourt, led by Baker and Allio, to translate to a very good defensive presence. Johnson called the tandem excellent passers and fantastic defenders.

Offensively, sophomore Cru Scott is poised for a big role.

“Cru Scott could turn out to be one of the better outside hitters around. He was injured last year as a freshman and if it wasn’t for that he would’ve got significant time as a freshman,” Johnson said. “We’re looking for big things out of him.”

Others players that could see a lot of varsity time are Xander Brauen, Ryder Bailey and Max Leytrick.

“We have a competitive practice gym right now and that’s going to make us better,” Johnson said. “That’s something as a program we haven’t had in a while.”

Saegertown finished 8-2 at the Meadville Tournament with losses to Fort LeBoeuf and Conneaut. The Panthers are 2-0 so far this season in regular season matches.

Cochranton

A familiar face will return to the sidelines for Cochranton, Brad Custead.

Custead coached Cochranton for 13 years, but stepped down in 2018 to watch his son, Andrew Custead, play. Now, Andrew Custead is coaching the junior high team, and Brad Custead is back to lead the varsity squad.

After a trip to the state finals in 2023, Cochranton graduated a good deal of talent and fell in the District 10 semifinals last year. This year, Custead hopes his Cardinals improve day-by-day.

“Being a young team, we are going to have our growing pains, but the goal for this year is to get better each day and look to peak at the end of the season,” Custead said. “We have a lot of talented players on our team this year. We’re just a little inexperienced right now, but that will all come with time.”

Junior Brady Rynd will be leaned on this year. Seniors Andrew Choffel and Nick Knapka will man the middle.

“Brady Rynd is going to be a huge part of our team this year, he has the court experience since he had lots of playing time the last couple years,” Custead said. “Our only two seniors are both middles, Andrew Choffel and Nick Knapka. Andrew got a lot of playing time last year and Nick started to get in toward the end of the season.”

Three freshmen — Evan King (setter), CJ Shorts (outside hitter) and Quinn McCartney (libero/defensive specialist) — will start for the varsity team. Sophomore Aiden Boher will see time in the back row and as the backup setter while junior Tyler Wright will start at opposite hitter.

Cochranton was 2-8 at the Meadville Tournament and lost in the silver bracket finals.

Maplewood

After a 2-12 finish last season in the second year of the revival of Maplewood’s boys volleyball program, head coach Calum Hyde thinks the Tigers are ready to be a contender.

“We picked up some new talent in our radius with the Mast brothers Danny and Zeke as well as an incredible athlete Bryce Flint. All of which have played before on the same team,” Hyde said. “The energy in our gym this season has never been better and we are looking forward to developing everyone into incredible ball players.”

Hyde expects to lean heavily on junior Logan Kier as a scorer, defender and leader. Danny Mast and Zeke Mast will see a lot of time on the court as well as returning setter Grant Crosley.

Crosley is the first setter Hyde’s had for back-to-back seasons and Hyde is excited to see his experience return to run the offense. At libero and defensive specialist, Ayden Gates and Cloud Southwick will compete for time. Charlie Snyder returns at middle hitter, though Danny Mast could see time at middle.

With 19 players on the roster, Maplewood finally has enough players to field a full JV team.

“This is the first year that I’ve been coaching that we haven’t been forced to play freshman on varsity thanks to our new additions of Danny, Zeke and Bryce,” Hyde said. “Them stepping in and preforming so well immediately for varsity means we can finally take the time to develop our underclassmen into high level players without the trial by fire of varsity play time.”

Maplewood was 1-9 at the Meadville Tournament, but played sets close against Fort LeBoeuf, Conneaut and McDowell.

“I’m trying to stay grounded this early in the season but I have extraordinarily high hopes for this group of guys this year. One realistic main goal is to make top five in the district but I haven’t told them that yet. They’d probably argue that I’m not shooting high enough but I’m trying to stay grounded in the reality that we have a lot of work ahead of us to be able to compete at the top level,” Hyde said. “One of the benefits of being in D-10 though is that all the teams we see are top tier, which will help us grow quickly.”

Cambridge Springs

Cambridge Springs ended its 2024 campaign in the District 10 quarterfinals. The Blue Devils graduated all-region outside hitter Parker Schmidt as well as several starters.

This year, sophomore Isaiah Simpson and senior Devin Laniewicz will be leaned on to shoulder the offensive load. Sophomore Rio Alejandro will be the starting setter.

“They are working hard. I feel things will come together,” head coach John Turner said. “It’s just trying to get them all together, healthy and on the same page.

“We’re going to lean on Devin for senior leadership. He played really well at the Meadville Tournament. We moved him from middle to outside this year.”

The Blue Devils were 0-10 at the Meadville Tournament. On Tuesday, they defeated Rocky Grove 3-1 and are 1-1 on the season after a loss at Saegertown in the opener.

In the win over Rocky Grove, Laniewicz and Simpson tallied 21 and 20 kills, respectively. Senior Seth Glenn and junior Noah Holland added 18 and 15 digs, respectfully. Alejandro dished 40 assists.

“Hopefully everybody comes together, that’s the big thing, just become a team and once districts starts push for it. Hopefully we can make a run at the region,” Turner said. “I think if the boys hang in there and if we can play some good defense we can stick with a lot of good teams.”

Conneaut

After losing to Fort LeBoeuf 3-2 in the District 10 quarterfinals last year, Conneaut opened 2025 strong.

“It’s always nice to start the season with a strong win. We have a solid team again this season, and I think starting the first week 2-0 is the tone we wanted them to set for themselves,” Conneaut assistant coach Jennifer Klink said. “We’re blessed with a lot of talent and solid skill sets all around. We don’t plan to lean on any one or two players; we’ll expect everyone to do their jobs.”

The Eagles were 8-2 at the Meadville Tournament and are 2-1 in the regular season.

Conneaut graduated a pair of second-team all-region players in Brevin Klink and Carson Alsdorf, but have a roster of 22 players. Klink expects to get production out of several players and won’t lean on one person.

“Our expectations for the team are to play each match with intensity and stay in control of the ball as much as we can,” Klink said. “As with any season, we’d like to get back to the playoffs and take further steps there, but we’re going to take each match one game at a time.”

March 26, 2025

Boys Volleyball

Home victory

Saegertown tops Conneaut in four sets

MEADVILLE TRIBUNE

SAEGERTOWN — Saegertown defeated Conneaut 3-1 (25-18, 25-18, 22-25, 25-21) in a non-region boys volleyball match at Steve Scott Gymnasium on Tuesday.

Saegertown sophomore Jackson Scott dished 34 assists. Westin Baker led the defense with 20 digs. Offensively, Cru Scott had 19 kills and Josh Weaver added 10.

Saegertown is 2-0 and will compete at the Northeastern Tournament on Friday and Saturday at Northeastern High School in Manchester.

Conneaut is 1-1 and the Eagles will play at Rocky Grove on April 3.

March 24, 2025

Boys Volleyball

Meadville volleyball wins local tournament

MEADVILLE TRIBUNE

The Meadville boys volleyball team took home the top spot at its own Meadville Tournament on Saturday at The House of Thrills.

The Bulldogs finished 10-0 in pool play. In the gold bracket, Meadville beat McDowell 25-15, Northeastern 25-20 and then topped Mars 25-12 in the title. The ‘Dogs had a plus-84 point differential in pool play and didn’t drop a set all day (13-0).

Saegertown and Conneaut were each 8-2 in pool play. Each team split against each other and Fort LeBoeuf, including Conneaut’s 36-34 win over the Bison. Saegertown and Conneaut each lost in the first round of the gold bracket.

Cochranton was 2-8 in pool play and lost the silver bracket championship to Moon.

Maplewood was 1-9 in pool play with its lone win against Moon. The Tigers lost to Cochranton in the first round of the silver bracket. Cambridge Springs was 0-10 on the day and lost to Moon in the silver bracket.

March 20, 2025

Boys Volleyball

Saegertown tops Cambridge

SAEGERTOWN — The Saegertown boys volleyball team beat Cambridge Springs 3-0 (25-21, 25-18, 25-12) on Wednesday at Steve Scott Gymnasium.

Sophomore Jackson Scott dished 24 assists. Cru Scott and Mason Allio each had eight kills. Westin Baker led the defense with 13 digs, Allio added 12.

Saegertown is 1-0 and will play at the Meadville Tournament on Saturday. Cambridge Springs is 0-1 and will also play in the tournament.