Of the many ways a team can win a match in nearly any sport is for said team to take advantage of its opponent's mistakes.

Early on, in the District Three Class 2A boys' volleyball playoff match between Garden Spot and Lancaster Mennonite on Monday evening, the Spartans took the opening set thanks to the Blazers' multitude of mistakes. Garden Spot went on to win the opening set 25-9 before winning the second set 25-16 and holding on for a 25-23 win to claim the second-round playoff match.

"We took advantage, especially in game one and a little bit in game two, of their mistakes," said Spartan's head coach Ben Rutt. "It was a really good start for us. When we took advantage of their mistakes, it started to alleviate any kinds of nerves we might have had. The good start got the crowd into it."

The Spartans (16-1) had plenty of support playing on their home court. They entered district play as the second-seeded team and had earned a bye in the opening round. In that first round, the seventh-seeded Blazers blazed by Fleetwood 3-0 before seeing their season end with an 11-11 record at New Holland on Monday.

"We definitely started rough," Gary Martin, the Blazers' head coach, said. "Just mentally we weren't there and made a lot of unforced errors. They're a solid team. They made us pay for it in that first one."

The Blazers' five service errors in the first set helped Garden Spot build momentum. The Spartans, during one stretch, went on an 11-2 run, building an 18-5 lead.

Scoring on a Laine King kill early in the second set, the Spartans got on the board. However, they found themselves in a back-and-forth contest until it was tied 9-9. They scored seven straight points from that juncture, including help from King and Chandler Xiong.

A Jordan Martin kill, a Griffin Witmer ace and a beautifully placed ball in the corner of the Blazers' side of the court, followed by a King block helped build a 22-13 lead.

King, who also had eight digs, three blocks and pair of service aces, finished tied with Witmer in kills. They each registered six while Tanner Laukhuff led the team with 11.

"Laine King can put that ball right in - build momentum for us," Xiong commented.

"He's a team player," agreed senior setter Jordan Martin. "As the season has gone on, Laine King has definitely stepped up and become one of our main killers."

Rutt addressed the importance of playing the Spartans kind of volleyball, which includes emphasis on solid defense.

"We came in knowing we had to respect our opponent, because they're also in districts," Rutt remarked, "and to stay disciplined. We had to not play out of character. We needed to do what we do well, which is a ball control, defense first type of game."

"Our defense was amazing," said Jordan Martin, who finished with four digs and a team high 28 assists. "If I'm up there blocking, I can always trust these guys to be there. Trust is the biggest thing in our defense."

As for Spartan teammates supporting each other's efforts, Xiong pointed out, "We always know where we're going to be - even if it's a bad pass, we're still going to back each other up."

The third set was a tight battle. Mennonite's 6-foot-7 junior Elijah Lazor was a force to be reckoned with as he came up with key plays, finishing with eight kills and eight digs.

The Blazers scored three straight points late in the third set and pulled to within 22-20. Two more points by the Spartans and back came the Blazers with three more, punctuated by a Lazor blast that made the deficit an uncomfortable 24-23. Witmer served up match point finally for the 25-23 win.

Xiong, who finished with three kills, led the team with 12 digs. Tyler Martin compiled 10 digs. Derrick Lambert and Joseph Sharp each collected five kills.

The victory secured a spot in the district semifinals against third-seeded York Suburban, also at Garden Spot.

The Spartans' hopes of reaching the state title match were broken by York Suburban on Wednesday night. The Trojans won the opening set 25-15 and managed to somehow eke out a 30-28 victory in the second set before another close victory (25-21) clinched it for the visitors in a 3-0 triumph.

King had nine kills to lead Garden Spot. Jordan Martin distributed 22 assists.

The Spartans had one match remaining - the third-place match with fourth-seeded Manheim Central.

"The competition is going to step up going forward," Rutt remarked. "We know we have to continue to improve every day.

"Obviously, this [the victory in quarterfinals] buys us another week and gets us into the state playoffs," he added.

TRACK

At the District Three Class 2A championships, which were held at Shippensburg on Friday and Saturday, May 21-22, the Garden Spot girls were led by Avery Stauffer, Bryna Kelly and Logan Martin. Kelly, who had a second-place time of 15.78 seconds in the 100-meter semis, finished eighth in the event's finals with a time of 20.10. She went on to capture ninth place in the 300m hurdles (47.37) while Stauffer finished 17th at 48.73.

Martin earned sixth in the javelin with a 119-foot throw.