Central York boys’ volleyball falls short in district final at Cumberland Valley

The Panthers took the first set, but the top-ranked Eagles took control in a 3-1 victory Saturday in Mechanicsburg.

MECHANICSBURG — The Central York boys’ volleyball team exited the stage of the Cumberland Valley gymnasium Saturday afternoon with plenty of reason to hold its head high. But it was fair to wonder what could have been if one key sequence had gone differently.

The Panthers had taken the first set of the District 3 Class 3A championship match, becoming the first team all season to take a game against the unbeaten Eagles in best-of-five competition. After Cumberland Valley cruised to victory in the second frame, the teams went back and forth in the third set until they were tied at 22 points apiece, each within striking distance of the match lead.

The Eagles came up clutch, slamming it home three times to take the set and take command. They left no doubt in the fourth, clinching a 23-25, 25-18, 25-22, 25-16 triumph and its second district championship in three years.

Cumberland Valley, the top-ranked Class 3A team in all of Pennsylvania, swept Central York when it won the 2023 district title. The Panthers reclaimed the throne with a five-set victory over Warwick last spring. Central was seeded sixth in this year’s bracket but won a pair of road showdowns to earn its shot at the Eagles.

“We knew we had to come out and start fast, and that’s what we did,” Central York senior setter Lance Shaffer said. “After that, they turned it on and played great.”

Senior John He paced the Panthers (16-3) with 17 kills and eight digs; fellow senior Patrick Siewert added 13 kills and five digs; and Shaffer finished with 12 digs and 38 assists. Central also received eight kills and five digs from junior Ian DeVos, as well as 17 digs from sophomore Shivesh Jethwa.

Seniors Bryson Webb and Aidan Dunwoody tallied 22 and 13 kills, respectively, and six digs apiece for the Eagles (18-0). Senior Isaiah Sibbitt dished 48 assists and junior Hayden Ackley notched 25 digs.

The match was played Saturday due to conflicts with graduations Thursday and Friday. He, Siewert, Shaffer and the rest of Central York’s senior class celebrated their commencement Friday evening and faced a quick turnaround. The Panthers were bursting with energy as play began, though. Senior Ryan Ulmer landed a backflip during the pregame pump-up huddle, and Central’s bench was noticeably more animated throughout the contest.

The 24-time district champion Panthers made the first move, scoring four straight points to go up 5-2, and they never relinquished their first-set lead. Cumberland Valley rallied to trim a 21-16 deficit to 21-19, and the Eagles clawed within one point at 25-23. But He softly dropped the winning point over the net and Central York’s opening statement was complete.

“I think our guys did a great job of just executing our game plan in Game 1,” Panthers co-head coach John Feldmann said. “They were really focused and just didn’t budge an inch in each point.”

Cumberland Valley took control early in the second set and was never threatened, setting up a dramatic Game 3. The lead changed hands several times, and after Central went up 19-16 on a block by Ethan Quartey, the Eagles quickly tied it at 20-all and reclaimed the lead at 22-21. He’s tying kill was followed by a block that sailed wide, a slam from CV’s Derek Paul and a Panther miscue at the net.

“We just didn’t execute the way we needed to to win the game,” Feldmann said. “Cumberland Valley made the plays they needed to do that and we did not, so that’s why they’re the champs today.”

Aspirations of a fifth set were short-lived. Central held a brief 7-6 lead in the fourth, but Cumberland Valley responded with four straight and stretched the margin as wide as 22-13 late in the frame. The Eagles scored the final three points for good measure.

Both teams were already assured of hosting their PIAA playoff opener on Tuesday, but Cumberland Valley earned a much more desirable path through the bracket with its district title. Central York, ranked fifth in this week’s PVCA Class 3A poll, will be saddled with a first-round matchup against third-ranked Seneca Valley, the District 7 runner-up. Both D3 finalists will need two victories to set up a rematch in the semifinals.

The Panthers had not played Cumberland Valley in an official match since the 2023 district final, but the teams met at multiple weekend tournaments this season, with Central York most recently knocking the Eagles out of bracket play at State College’s Little Lion Invitational. Cumberland Valley, though, was unbeaten against the Panthers in four sets en route to its April championships at Northeastern’s Bobcat Invitational and Central York’s Koller Classic.

Saturday was another feather in the cap for the Eagles, who have topped the statewide coaches’ poll since the second week of play. The preseason No. 1, ironically, was Central York, and the Panthers still have aspirations of claiming their eighth state championship — and first since 2017 — in two weeks.

“It’s something that’s been passed down from each iteration of each team, the standard of Central York volleyball,” Feldmann said. “We talk about that a lot — just through the history of the program, there’s kind of an expectation, a standard with that. We don’t shy away from it, we try to embrace it, and this group has really worked hard and prepared well to give themselves the opportunity to play in a game like this, against one of the best teams in the state, with the district title on the line.

“Moving forward, we have a quick turnaround now … so we’re gonna get back to the drawing board and get right back to work in preparing for Seneca Valley on Tuesday.”