MARATHON MEN

Pennridge rallies past Upper Dublin in five sets

FORT WASHINGTON » The Pennridge boys’ volleyball team hasn’t quite seen it yet this season.

Now roughly halfway through their season, the Rams feel they haven’t quite put it all together yet. Sure, they’re 7-2 after a gritty comeback against Upper Dublin on Monday, but as a program that’s had eyes on deep postseason runs the past few years, it’s not on the same level.

Still, the effort they showed on the road as they rallied out of a two-set deficit to top the Cardinals 3-2 (20-25, 22-25, 25-19, 2519, 15-12) was a step in the right direction.

“We definitely needed that,” Pennridge senior hitter Cross Edwards said. “Volleyball is an upand-down sport and sometimes when we do something wrong, we crawl up into our shell and get upset with ourselves but this game was a real test of how much we could rally to get a win.”

For the host Cardinals, it was another case of coming close but not quite having enough to finish things off. UD, which fell to 2-5, played two great sets to start the match, frustrating Pennridge with its blocking and keeping its offense balanced.

Blake Bayles anchored the block while Matt Ross and Mario Petushi knocked down some swings on the outsides as the Cardinals seized control late in the first set then held off a Rams rally to go up 2-0. They couldn’t stop Pennridge’s rally in the third set,

GENE WALSH — DIGITAL FIRST MEDIA Pennridge’s Cross Edwards spikes as Upper Dublin’s Alec Madden and Blake Bayles defend Monday night.