Chambersburg drops 1st division volleyball match
Heading into Tuesday's home match against Cumberland Valley, the Chambersburg boys volleyball team was sitting atop the Mid Penn Commonwealth Division with a perfect conference record, with a first-round division sweep in its sights.
But the Eagles had their own goals in reach, pushing for a playoff spot, and hoping to topple Chambersburg's fine start.
And they did just that, handing Chambersburg its first loss since the season opener with a 3-0 sweep, 25-21, 25-18, 25-23.
"We knew it was a big match for them to get another win, and for us to sweep the first half," Chambersburg coach Marta Cummings said. "We came in with confidence and we knew it was a big game for both teams. We didn't want to treat it differently than any other match, but we knew the importance."
Chambersburg has had issues this season finding a rhythm and settling in on the first set, which was apparent Tuesday as Cumberland Valley (3-2, 3-2 MPC) took advantage and worked its way into a tight match, using Trojan inconsistencies to its advantage. Chambersburg made 30 offensive errors.
"Just the match in itself was really big for our confidence level," Cumberland Valley coach Terry Ranck said. "I think they're playing now with confidence and we are very relaxed and making the other team make the mistakes rather than trying to force things and make mistakes."
Heading into the third game with its first 2-0 deficit since the first match of the season, Chamberbsurg started to "fight to stay alive."
"By the time we hit game three we were battling a little bit harder, but we just couldn't keep it consistent," Cummings said.
"They knew this was also a big game for them; their winning mentality was just a little bit stronger than ours," said the Trojans' Dylan Culler, who entered the game in the second set with hopes to turning the game around. "It's pretty hard to get my team back up (after a deficit) but I always try to keep their heads up."
Dalton Strite led Chambersburg (4-2, 4-1 MPC) offensively with 14 kills, while Riley Washington led with 10 blocks.