Souderton

The Souderton volleyball team gathered for the final time-out of the District 1 championship match last night, and began bouncing together before returning to the court. "We just do that to get fired up," senior outside-middle hitter Adam Bennett said. "We just start jumping and jumping. " The Indians jumped all the way to the championship, rebounding for a 4-15, 15-7, 13-15, 16-14, 15-11 win over Pennsbury at Norristown High. Both teams are scheduled to open the state tournament Tuesday.

Sitting around in damp football equipment wasn't part of the game plan. But Souderton shook off the effects of two stoppages in the fourth quarter Friday night against host Pennridge and won the Suburban One American football game at Poppy Yoder Field, 14-0. With the victory, Souderton (6-3 overall, 6-3 league) held on to third place in the Liberty Division, behind Plymouth-Whitemarsh and Cheltenham. Pennridge dropped to 4-4 overall and in the division. The teams played nearly 39 minutes of football in steady rain, with the crowd apparently content to watch from underneath an assortment of umbrellas and rain gear.

Tom Coopersmith, the head coach of Souderton's ice hockey team, realizes the limitations of players new to the game. That's why Coopersmith isn't expecting much from the Indians this season. "Most of our guys are first-year or second-year players," the coach said. "I've been teaching a lot of defensive skills. Everyone is anxious to score, but not as eager to learn defensive techniques. " Souderton, which played at the junior varsity level last season, topped Bishop McDevitt, 7-5, Tuesday night at Warwick Twin Rinks to snap a five-game losing streak and notch its first Inter-County Scholastic Hockey League win of the 1998-99 campaign.

Kyle Greenwalt is ready for the curveball that tomorrow's baseball draft may throw him. If only Exeter had been as prepared for the Souderton righthander's knee-buckling, 12-6 breaking ball. Greenwalt, in top form, used a devastating curveball as Souderton humbled District 3's Exeter, 5-1, yesterday in a PIAA Class AAAA first-round playoff game at Quakertown's Memorial Field. The victory gave the Indians their first state playoff win - after losing to eventual state champion Delaware Valley last season in the opening round - and set up a clash with West Chester East tomorrow at a time and location to be determined.

After Pennsbury beat Souderton, 5-0, Thursday at Spring-Ford in near-100-degree heat to advance to the PIAA Class AAAA softball semifinals, a Falcons fan folded his chair and said: "Now that was a workmanlike win. " That was probably the best way to sum up the Falcons' 22d victory in 25 games this season. Pennsbury, seeking its sixth state championship under coach Frank McSherry, got the hits when it needed them, played near-flawless defense, and received a one-hit pitching performance from sophomore Val Buehler to put down the Indians, the surprise team of the season.

The mood surrounding the PIAA District 1 girls' soccer quarterfinal playoffs was one of with excitement and anticipation Thursday afternoon as defending state champion Central Bucks West hosted the first-year program of Souderton. "We didn't really know anything about Souderton except that they had a very good record," Central Bucks West junior Maggie Moyer said after West had routed the Indians, 9-1. "We worked very hard in practice getting ready for the game, but when the game started, we were a little nervous.

Souderton manager Mark Ludlow was understandably skeptical when he received a call from 41-year old Bob Anderson late in the summer of 1989. "He said he was interested in pitching for us," said Ludlow. "My gut reaction was that he was some guy who was watching a game on television and remembered what is was like when he pitched in Little League. " But there was something about Anderson that was different. He said he had just moved to Bucks County from California, where he pitched in a weekend league.

Souderton is the top seed in the PIAA District 1 volleyball tournament that begins today, and the Indians are hoping to avoid the upset that kept them from claiming the title last season. Then, as the No. 1 seed, they suffered their first loss of the season in the district semifinals to eventual champion William Tennent. "I think this is going to be an interesting year; I think there are going to be some upsets," said Indians coach Will Lapp, whose team has been ranked in the Pennsylvania Volleyball Coaches Association top-20 state poll all season.

The Souderton boys' volleyball team claimed its second title of the season Saturday by defeating Governor Mifflin, 15-10, 16-14, in the Quakertown Tournament finals. "Everybody did a pretty good job," said Indians coach Will Lapp, whose team was 14-1 in games at Quakertown. "Brad Garrett and Dan Hoch did a good job on the outside, and Matt Musselman did well in the middle. Momentum was a key to the win. "All the teams we played were really scrappy," Lapp said. "We'd finish one good match and go on to the next.

The effort to ban in-line skating from local streets is back stronger than ever, after a delay to consider the rights of residents to skate freely in the borough. A ban was initially proposed because of growing safety concerns about reckless skating and stunt riding. Last month, though, several Borough Council members and residents spoke up for the rights of recreational skaters, causing the ban to be shelved for further discussion. That discussion only increased the number of skating critics.

Zach Higgins' overtime goal helped West Chester East erase a two-goal deficit on Wednesday and top Downingtown West, 3-2, at Ice Line in West Chester in the first round of Flyers Cup Class A. The senior forward scored 5 minutes, 29 seconds into the extra period with an assist from Kevin Cleary. Pat Ward had tied the score at 2 late in the third period off an assist from Carter Dwyer. A freshman defenseman, Dwyer also scored a power-play goal in the second period. Tyler Percival posted 36 saves for the win. Joe DiGinto and D.J. Barbato scored in the first period for the Whippets.

Kaitlyn Eisenhard's strong first quarter Wednesday night gave her the chance to eclipse Boyertown's 30-year-old girls' basketball scoring mark, as she lifted the seventh-seeded Bears over No. 10 Garnet Valley, 48-37, in the second round of the District 1 Class AAAA playoffs. The senior scored seven of her game-high 22 points in the first quarter. She will need five to tie Wanda Moyer's 1983 mark of 1,373 points on Saturday as Boyertown travels to Mount St. Joseph in the quarterfinals.

Boys' Basketball CATHOLIC LEAGUE SEMIFINALS St. Joseph's Prep 57, Roman Catholic 50 Neumann-Goretti 57, Archbishop Carroll 34 Boys' Bowling PUBLIC LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP Northeast 4, Frankford 0 Girls' Bowling PUBLIC LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP Girls High 3, Constitution 1 Girls' Basketball DISTRICT 1 AAAA SECOND-ROUND West Chester Rustin 54, Methacton 49 Spring-Ford 52, Downingtown West 31 Central Bucks West...

From the 11-point deficit early in the game to Harriton's 35-foot buzzer-beater to end the third quarter, Upper Darby coach Bob Miller said he thought it "was going to be one of those nights. " "It never looked like it was in the cards for us," Miller said. The cards did not matter much on Tuesday night as Beni Toure scored seven of his 11 points in the fourth quarter to lift the ninth-seeded Royals over visiting No. 25 Harriton, 47-41, in the second round of the District 1 Class AAAA boys' basketball playoffs.

Kaitlyn Eisenhard's strong first quarter Wednesday night ensured her the chance to eclipse Boyertown's 30-year-old girls' basketball scoring mark, as she lifted the seventh-seeded Bears over No. 10 Garnet Valley, 48-37, in the second round of the District 1 Class AAAA playoffs. The senior scored seven of her game-high 22 points in the first quarter. She will need five to tie Wanda Moyer's 1983 mark of 1,373 points on Saturday as Boyertown travels to meet Mount St. Joseph in the quarterfinals.

North Penn senior Lauren Crisler scored her 1,000th career point in a 44-29 home win against Central Bucks South on Tuesday in a Suburban One Continental girls' basketball game. Crisler reached the milestone with a foul shot in the third quarter. A 6-foot-2, American University recruit, Crisler led all players with 17 points, while playing guard, forward, and center. Steph Knauer was the last North Penn player to score 1,000 points, getting it last season. She finished with 1,262 points.

Bianca Picard did a lot of great things on the basketball court for the Souderton Indians on Saturday afternoon: three three-pointers, a couple of steals, a few rebounds, and some assists. But according to the junior point guard, the most important thing she did on the floor was something that has been developing all season: She completely trusted her teammates. That confidence in her mates is something she relied on against Neshaminy, she said, as she committed herself to playing "full, on-the-ball defense" when her shots didn't fall in the Indians' 38-31 win during the Suburban One League Challenge at Bensalem.

Kathleen Fitzpatrick's second-half surge Friday helped propel Notre Dame past visiting Germantown Academy, 49-44, in an Inter-Ac League girls' basketball game. The senior guard bound for St. Joseph's scored 14 of her game-high 20 points after the break as Notre Dame erased a one-point halftime deficit. Nikki Callahan sealed the win by hitting hit all four of her foul shots in the final 90 seconds. Olivia Gorman led GA with 15 points, 10 in the fourth quarter. Also in the Inter-Ac: Gianna Pownall scored 24 points, and Julia Schumacher added 14 as Springside Chestnut Hill downed visiting Penn Charter, 51-38.