North Penn saw its season end in a tough five-set match with Central Dauphin in the opening round of the PIAA 3A Tournament. Neshaminy advanced to the second round. NP/Central Dauphin photos courtesy of Keith Clemens Photography. Check back for a gallery. CLICK HERE to go directly to Suburban One Sports' BOYS' VOLLEYBALL GALLERIES.
PIAA Class 3A State Tournament opening round
#3-3 Central Dauphin 3, #1-1 North Penn 2 (20-25, 20-25, 25-18, 33-31, 15-11)
With the Knights holding a 2-0 lead after two sets, an opening round win not only seemed possible but probable for North Penn. The visiting Rams had other ideas, rallying to win three straight to earn the reverse sweep, including a grueling fourth set that saw them fight off five North Penn match points only to eke out the 33-31 win. They went on to win the fifth set 15-11.
So, what changed in the third set when the tide turned.
“They changed their lineup,” North Penn coach Zheng Huang said. “They switched
their big hitter to the middle (George Mason commit Brodie Hesler), and then they got a couple of good hits, so that kind of changed our dynamic a little bit.
“At the same time, we were making more mistakes ourselves, especially in the third set. I was very disappointed with our performance in the third set, and that kind of streaked on to the fourth set. We had a good comeback, but because the other team was having a great run, it was difficult. We also made some errors when we had match point.”
It looked as though the third set loss wouldn’t prove all that costly when the Knights – who trailed 22-14 – battled back in the fourth set. North Penn senior libero Prithvi Patel stepped to the service line with his team on the short end of a 22-16 score, and the Knights fought back to even the score 22-22.
Included in that run were a pair of Luca Dalla Costa kills in the middle. The Rams took a 23-22 lead when a Knight hit sailed out of play, but the Knights evened the score on a Daniel Arskiy kill.
It marked the beginning of an intense battle between a pair of teams refusing to lose. The Knights – at 30-29 - had their final match point thwarted by a Hesler kill.
“They changed their middle, and it gave us some problems,” Patel said.
In the fifth set, the Rams opened up a 5-2 lead after a service ace. The Knights pulled to within one but never could get over the hump.
“It's really tough to see it end,” Patel said. “We were (one of the) top five bottom teams three years ago, and now we made it to states.” 
Despite the disappointing ending, the future is bright for North Penn volleyball.
“I have a great bunch of juniors coming up, and I’m also developing a program, so I think our program will go upwards from now on,” Huang said. “I’m very pleased with the steps we took, and I’m very pleased with the team’s growth. It was a great step for the program as well. We can build on this one.”
“I think the guys next year and years after will be better and better,” Patel said. “I think we’ll see a state champ soon.”
By the numbers: North Penn: Junior setter Sam Kim (23 assists, 2 digs), sophomore setter Liam Jeffers (13 assists, 8 digs), senior opposite Kyle Park led the offense (11 kills, 3 blocks), junior opposite Daniel Arskiy (10 kills, 1 block), senior middle Logan Krider (8 kills, 5 blocks), senior middle Luca Dalla Costa (4 kills, 4 blocks), senior outside Quinn Clarkson (8 kills, 1 ace, 6 digs), senior libero Prithvi Patel (19 digs, 4 aces)
North Penn closed out its successful season with a District 1 3A title and an overall record of 15-7.
#1-2 Neshaminy 3, #12-1 Northeast 0
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