North Allegheny boys volleyball draws PIAA championship rematch with Central Dauphin

By: Chris Harlan
Friday, June 10, 2022 | 6:00 AM

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Some things seem to never change.

Three-time defending PIAA champion North Allegheny is headed back to Penn State’s Rec Hall for the fifth season in a row, a remarkable run of state final appearances for the boys volleyball team. And waiting for the Tigers this weekend will be the same team they defeated last season.

North Allegheny (17-1) faces Central Dauphin (22-0) at 1:30 p.m. Saturday in the PIAA Class 3A championship rematch. The District 3 champion from Harrisburg looks much the same as last season with a senior-heavy lineup that includes outside hitter Tyler McConnell, a Division I recruit headed to Mount Olive, an NCAA Top 25 program.

But not everything about this rematch is the same.

“We’re a much different team than we were last year,” North Allegheny coach Dan Schall said. “A lot of key figures graduated, so a lot of the guys on our side of the net are brand new. It was a huge turnover, and I think that speaks to the feat of these guys getting back there.”

The Tigers have only three players who started in last year’s state championship: setter Caleb Schall, defensive specialist Ryan Treser and outside hitter Cole Dorn. Treser, now the team’s libero, recently broke the program’s single-season digs record set by his brother Trevor in 2019.

Everybody else on the court is a first-year starter.

“A lot of teams would look to our graduating seniors and think, ‘Ooh, two new middles and a new outside and a new libero,’” Dan Schall said. “I think we regrouped pretty well, I’d say.”

This is the 19th time overall that North Allegheny has reached the state finals and the 11th appearance since Schall became coach in 2002. The Tigers won four titles in that span, including three in a row from 2018-21 (the 2020 season was canceled).

Yet, before considering another postseason run, NA had questions to answer.

“People knew that we were losing a lot of seniors last year, and we knew that a lot of younger guys would have to step up this year,” said senior Caleb Schall, a second-year starter. “We were fully confident that they would. I’m happy that we get to show the state we’re here again.”

Central Dauphin and North Allegheny are each ranked nationally in the latest American Volleyball Coaches Association poll. Central Dauphin is fifth and North Allegheny 18th.

The two teams already ran into one another twice in the regular season with mixed results. They played one game at the York tournament April 9 and Central Dauphin won, 25-23. They met again in pool play at the State College tournament April 30 and they split two games there.

A year ago in the state finals, Central Dauphin won the first set, 29-27, before North Allegheny won the next three, 25-15, 25-14 and 25-16. Central Dauphin has reached the state finals for the third time after winning the Class 3A title in 2009 over Penn Hills.

“We did expect to see them here,” Caleb Schall said. “They’re a very good team. We’ve seen them a couple of times this year in tournaments, but I think this is the first time we’re playing them with both of our teams fully healthy.”

North Allegheny lost a key player for an extended period when Dorn was sidelined early in the season with an ankle sprain. Without the St. Francis recruit, junior Jax Wilhite and senior Titus LaMay took on larger roles as outside hitters.

Among the other first-year starters, senior middle blocker Jack Birch was named first-team all-WPIAL and junior Nico Sfeir earned second-team honors. Each had six kills in a 3-0 state semifinal win over Pennridge.

Dorn returned in mid-May and reestablished himself as an offensive threat. He had a team-high 25 kills in the WPIAL finals to defeat Seneca Valley, 3-2, on May 25.

The Tigers haven’t lost a set since the WPIAL finals, defeating all three state tournament opponents 3-0. In the state semifinals, they defeated Pennridge, 25-23, 25-17 and 25-17. Central Dauphin advanced to the finals with a 3-0 win over District 11 champion Northampton. The Rams won 25-12, 25-14 and 25-17.

“They’re maybe the most polished team we’ve played in terms of their skill level,” Dan Schall said. “They have two excellent outside hitters. We’re not going to stop their left-side attack, but our ability to defend it, get some blocking touches, get some digs on them, maybe serve them into some problems, will be the key.

“But that’s easier said than done.”

Chris Harlan is a TribLive reporter covering sports. He joined the Trib in 2009 after seven years as a reporter at the Beaver County Times. He can be reached at charlan@triblive.com.

Tags: North Allegheny