Red-hot Bulldogs sweep Bison
Meadville swept Fort LeBoeuf 3-0 (25-13, 25-14, 25-16) on Wednesday to send the Bulldogs into the District 10 title game.
The Bulldogs rolled on all cylinders in the District 10 semifinals. Meadville closed the first set on a 20-6 run to take control of the match.
The early-match effort was a welcome sight for Meadville head coach Nick Bancroft.
“I thought they did a good job tonight. They had a different mentality out there,” Bancroft said. “They were firing on all cylinders tonight and I thought they did a nice job. There are still a few things we could sharpen up and get ready for next Wednesday.”
Meadville controlled the second and third sets with a powerful offense and tough defense. Four players finished with more than five kills. Sophomore Luc Soerensen, in his first game back after winning a gold medal with the U.S. U19 national team, led the way with 11 kills. Parker Gosnell, Tymir Phillips and Max Decker each added six kills.
Last season, Meadville was upset by Mercyhurst Prep in the D-10 semifinals and did not advance to the title match. Senior setter Jack Brown wanted to ensure that didn’t happen again.
“The mindset tonight was to take it one game at a time. In our last game against Rocky Grove we had to treat them like they’re the best team in the state,” Brown said. “Last year we didn’t have the best outcome at the end, and we knew being in the same situation we couldn’t take this team lightly.
“They’re a solid team on the other side of the net. It felt good to get out of here with a win.”
Brown finished with 29 assists in the match.
Meadville will play Saegertown for the District 10 crown on Wednesday at Allegheny College at 6 p.m.
“It’s really exciting, especially after last year not making it there. All these guys are really excited about it and I love playing with all these guys.”
