In the world of sports, high school or otherwise, a loss is a loss, and it rarely makes a difference if it was close or not. Need an example, look no further than the boys' volleyball team and their 3-0 loss to Penn Manor on May 4th. The Buckskins lost the three games by a total of 14 points with the bulk of them coming in the Comets 25-16 game three, matching sealing win. Game one went to Penn Manor by a 25-22 final and game two followed with a 25-23 final. Drew Hultstrand (21 assists), Rowan Aisenbrey (18 digs) and Mason Tardibuono (10 kills) kept things close.

The 'Bucks all but secured their District 3-3A playoff spot with a 3-0 win over Manheim Township on the 9th. The Blue Streaks kept things close, but CV was able to post 25-20, 25-22 and 25-19 wins sweeping the match. Hultstrand dished out 30 more assists while adding eight digs. Carson Hoover added two aces to his 10 kills while Garret Funck finished with two blocks.

TRACK

The track teams finished their regular season with a trip to Elizabethtown on the 8th. The result was an 81-69 win for the girls and an 87-63 win on the boy's side.

Brooke Denlinger and Alondra Ortiz paced the Lady Buckskins win with two solo and two relay wins. Denlinger won the 100H (15.0) and 300H (48.0) while Ortiz topped the 100m (12.0) and 200m (25.0). The duo teamed up with Hallie Schnapf and Mae Lindor for a 400m relay win and with Bellemarie Alston and Elli Hershey for a 1600m relay win. CV swept the relay events thanks to Meagan Kime, Kylie Antrim, Seana Dougherty and Alston clocking a 10:16 in the 3200m relay. The final two wins came in the field with Katelyn Williams taking the javelin and Hershey the high jump.

The boys took the meet despite just one relay win with Jayden Johnson, Andrew Hoffner, Zach Phy and Nick Tran posting a 44.0 to claim the 400m relay. Tran added wins in the 100m (11.0) and 200m (22.0) while Phy claimed the 300H with a 39.0. Caleb Malari gave CV a hurdles sweep with a 15.0 in the 110H while Timothy Gitonga picked up the final win on the track with his 4:32 in the 1600m.

Five different Buckskins posted one field win each starting with Michael Jackson in the long jump. Thabo Lautsbaugh won the triple jump with Anderson taking the high jump. Aiden Zimmerman continued his stellar season with a 173' toss in the javelin while Luke Morley topped the pole vault field by clearing 10-6.

GIRLS' LACROSSE

The 2023 girls' lacrosse season came to a close on May 5th when CV dropped their finale to Garden Spot, 10-9. One day prior the Lady Buckskins found themselves on the wrong end of another 10-9 final, this time with Lancaster Country Day handing out the loss. Alaina Culbert and Jordyn Hironimus each netted a hat trick in the loss. Sophia Hess added two goals and Rachel Tsai the final tally. Jamie Handwerger finished with 10 saves.

BOYS' LACROSSE

The boy's lacrosse team dropped to 9-7 overall after a 15-8 loss to Cocalico on May 4th. The Eagles put the game away in the second and third quarters where they outscored CV 11-2. The 'Bucks actually held a slim 6-4 edge in the remaining two frames, but it was not enough to overcome the Cocalico rush.

Soren Stoltzfus finished with 17 saves while Jeff Fisher paced the attack with three goals and four assists. Tyson Zwaska, Noah Nolt, Hunter Silvaggio, Isaiah Sensenig and Justin Corson each tacked on one goal.

BASEBALL

Count the baseball team among the spring sports teams turning in their uniforms. The Buckskins finished 6-14 on the year with the final victory coming on the 5th. CV used a six-run opening frame to get by Elizabethtown 9-4. Jude Thompson enjoyed the win after covering six innings. Evan Lapp took care of the final frame with the pair combining for one walk and no strikeouts.

Six different 'Bucks all finished with one RBI led by Owen Fisher and his fourth inning solo blast. Thompson, Caden Miller, Luke Landis and Kayden Fisher all picked up their RBI with a single while Evan Wilson lifted a sac fly in the sixth for his RBI.

Lampeter-Strasburg came to town on the 8th and left a 7-1 winner. Kayden Fisher broke up the Pioneer shutout with his RBI single in the seventh. Owen Fisher pitched into the fifth before giving way to Miller. He lasted one inning while Wilson covered the final two frames. Together they allowed seven runs with only five earned runs to go with four walks and eight strikeouts.

CV stepped out of the L-L for the season finale on May 9th, hosting Red Lion. The Lions needed five innings to secure a 10-0 win, handing Brendan Bosset the loss for his four innings of work. Lapp covered the final three outs where he surrendered the final run. Lapp was also responsible for the lone CV hit, leading off the second with a single.

SOFTBALL

The softball team finished their 2023 season with four straight losses, leaving the Lady Buckskins 7-13 overall. Elizabethtown handed out the first of those losses, claiming a 5-1 win on May 5th. The Lady Bears plated all five of their runs in the seventh, flipping CV's 1-0 lead into the 5-1 final. Brylee Bateson was responsible for that run, smacking a single in the fifth. Rhiannon Henry pitched all seven innings, but two CV errors pushed all five E-town runs into the unearned column.

Conestoga Valley's offense continued to struggle on the 8th leading to a 3-0 loss to Lampeter-Strasburg. Henry added another complete game loss to her record despite finishing with nine strikeouts. Hollyn Helsel connected on two of CV's three hits while Isabella Rodriguez picked up the final single.

Ephrata came to town on the 9th, needing five innings to secure the 17-1 win. Henry and Bateson split pitching duties, combining for four strikeouts and five walks. Bateson, Rodriguez, Alexa Freeburn and Tori Rhoads accounted for the offense, each finishing with a single.

The final setback of the season came on the 10th in heartbreaking fashion for CV. The Lady Buckskins used a two-run single by Kaitlyn Humphreville to take a 2-0 lead in the top of the second. Henry and her 11 strikeouts kept the score 2-0 until the bottom of the sixth. There the Lady Barons plated three runs to go up 3-2 where the score stayed after CV went three up-three down in the top of the seventh.