After an 8-3 regular season that earned them third place in Section I, the CV boys volleyball team embarked on their L-L playoff journey but was knocked out of contention in a quarterfinal loss to Manheim Central 3-1 on May 13th at Hempfield High School.

Paced by Sawyer Shertzer's 17 kills, CV was in the mix during all four sets and won the third (26-24, 25-23, 26-24, 25-20). Dominic Brabant put up 33 assists in addition to firing three aces.

Defensive standouts, Camden Clapper and Jayden Rice, were a powerful force at the net with four blocks apiece and Charles Janvrin produced five digs in the loss.

TRACK

CV celebrated individual and team success at the May 14-15th L-L League Championships held at Hempfield High School. The boys team clinched eighth place out of 20 teams, and the girls team placed ninth in a field of 21 teams.

Destiny Ellerbe took home an individual gold with her 35-6 shot put throw, the only contestant to clear 35 feet.

Grace Lapp also earned a medal with her 48.69 personal best time in the 300m hurdles to capture sixth place, and Ellie Hershey cruised to a seventh-place finish in the 400m dash, clocking a 2:02.35.

Two girls relay teams put together team best times in their respective events and both relay teams finished with sixth place honors.

Jess Koenig, Lapp, Hershey, and Mae Linder sprinted through the 4x100 in 51.67, while the foursome comprised of Veronica Santamaria, Hershey, Kylynn Frankford, and Emily Castronova also achieved a team best in the 4x400 clocking a time of 4:15.31.

For the boys, the day's top performance came from the 4x400 relay team, with Josh Rennekamp, Owen Linder, Kyle Thrush, and Emmanuel Gitonga joining forces to break the tape with a time of 3:26.54 and win the event.

The 4x100 relay team produced a third place showing with their time of 43.68 and was comprised of Tarius Jackson, Rennekamp, Nick Tran, and Linder.

Sprinting to individual medals was Linder in the 200m dash securing fourth place (22.93), and Rennekamp in the 400m dash to claim fifth (52.11).

Thrush ran a 4:21.76 mile good enough for sixth place in the 1600, and Robbie Swift placed eighth in javelin with a 137' throw.

Jackson also earned a pair of sixth place individual medals for his work in the triple jump (41-7.5) and long jump (20-8.75), and Zach Stoudt cleared a 5-10 high jump to finish on the podium in fifth.

"The team had a great showing," celebrated coach Rick Periandi. We had a lot of terrific performances."

BOYS LACROSSE

CV boy's lacrosse was knocked out the PIAA District III tournament in a heartbreaking first round overtime loss to Exeter Township 12-11.

The 12th seeded Buckskins came out hot against the five seed, notching five goals in the first quarter to lead 5-2, but Exeter responded with a six-goal second quarter to gain an 8-6 advantage at the half.

Five second-half goals from CV and three from Exeter knotted the contest at 11 apiece and propelled the game into OT where Exeter managed to secure the game-winner.

The contest was a rollercoaster of emotions as the Bucks fought back from their halftime deficit and then saw the overtime opportunity.

"It was a tough end to a fantastic season. We threw out a couple new sets and made some adjustments that allowed us to make stops on the defensive end as well as start to cash in on scoring opportunities," head coach Nick DiPiano described the second half.

Zach Fisher netted five goals, Hunter Silvaggio and Jeff Fisher each supplied a pair and Conrad Dillman and Keaghan Sweigart put in one apiece. Benjamin Nolt collected nine saves.

The loss concludes a 12-7 season full of hard work and overcoming unknown obstacles.

"We set lofty goals for a program that hasn't made the playoffs in 14 years, and we went and achieved many of those goals," credited DiPiano. "Our success this year is a true testament to our seniors and our captains. Overall, this team was never afraid to fail, and they were always prepared to win."

GIRLS' LACROSSE

The Lady Bucks lacrosse PIAA District III playoff run ended after a 13-10 loss to New Oxford in the first round on Tuesday, May 18th.

Senior Abby Morley netted six goals, Amanda Yingling added a pair, and Annika Bredeman had one.

CV keeper Jamie Handwerger grabbed eight saves.

SOFTBALL

Lady Bucks softball continued to display their improvement all the way to the final contest, claiming a 16-2 win over Cocalico on May 14th to conclude the season.

Rhiannon Henry pitched eight strikeouts against a total of 19 batters faced while earning the win in the circle. Henry allowed just two hits and walked zero batters over the course of five innings.

"Rhiannon had a really nice showing and is starting to demonstrate her potential," praised coach Dennis Ryan.

Henry was also pivotal at the plate, joining Becca Hartranft and Lexi Weitzel with three hits apiece, and Payton Stoeckl powered a homer in the runaway win.

Lexi Freeburn drove in the most CV runs with three RBIs from her pair of hits, while Anya Ditzler and Henry each drove in two.

Laken Smith, Kylie Metzler, and Lane Castagna each supplied a hit to bring the Lady Bucks hit count to 16.

"In the last game of the season you could tell the offense was starting to fire on all cylinders," pointed out Ryan. "This year it was a blessing to get the softball team on the field, in the sunshine, having fun, and playing the game they love."