Beaver County Christian big surprise
Coach Christen Adels isn't exaggerating when she refers to her Beaver County Christian boys volleyball squad as young and inexperienced.
“We have one returning starter and he's been out with an injury,” said Adels, now in her seventh season as Eagles head coach. “None of the eight players we’ve been using in our starting rotation has previous varsity experience.”
Quinn McCracken, a 6-foot-2 junior middle hitter, is Beaver County Christian’s only returning starter. He sustained a broken ankle in the middle of February and was cleared for limited play only two weeks ago.
“We used him a little bit in our [April 9] match against Trinity and in the Fox Chapel Tournament [April 11],” Adels said. “But due to our schedule, he hasn't gone through a practice yet.”
With McCracken out of the picture, Adels began the season with two seniors, four sophomores and two freshmen in the starting rotation, and one of the seniors had never played volleyball before.
This would be a recipe for disaster for most programs, but not for Adels and her Beaver County Christian squad. The Eagles posted a 4-1 record in the first half of play in Class AA Section 1 and are ranked No. 3 in the WPIAL.
“The kids are having a blast,” Adels said. “They get along so well. It's been a lot of fun and a joy to coach these kids. In my seven years, this is the easiest team to coach. They love to play volleyball and are quick learners.”
Beaver County Christian concluded the first half with last week’s 3-1 win against No. 6 Montour.
“Our only section loss [in the first half] was to [three-time defending WPIAL champion] Ambridge,” said Adels, referring to a 3-1 loss to the Bridgers. “Ambridge may have been hit hard by graduation losses, but they are still the team to beat in our
section. We are ranked No. 3, but we have to fight to stay there.”
Adels is concerned about the second half.
“Our section schedule was front-loaded with home matches,” Adels said. “Four of our matches in the first half were at home. That means we have four road matches in the second half. Having four home matches in the first half was good since we had a young team, but I'm concerned how they will react to that many road matches in the second half.
“Last year, we had a 5-0 record at home, but were 2-3 on the road. We have to keep the momentum we built going into the second half or teams will sneak up on you in this section.”
After defeating Farrell in a non-league match last week, Beaver County Christian resumed its section schedule this week. They lost to Ambridge Tuesday in the first match of the second half and were scheduled to play Hopewell Thursday.
“Derry and Ambridge [the WPIAL finalists four of the past five years] are clearly the teams to beat again this year,” Adels said.
Beaver County Christian's lineup features four sophomores, 5-10 outside hitter Daniel Townsend, 6-0 setter Matthew Knab, 5-8 outside hitter Adam Shaw and 5-6 libero Patrick Tyson.
“Daniel and Matthew have brothers who graduated last year,” Adels said. “Daniel is our best allaround player. He has great ball control, a good jump serve and is a great defensive player. Matthew has done a good job of distributing the ball to our hitters. He's done a fine job in his debut.”
The two seniors are 6-1 middle hitter Landon Hall and 6-8 opposite Spencer York. The two freshmen are 6-2 middle hitter Peter Barbato and 5-7 back-row specialist Sam Verrett.
“We have to keep the momentum we built going into the second half or teams will sneak up on you in this section.” – Christen Adels, Beaver CC coach