{"id":25478,"date":"2025-11-05T12:11:09","date_gmt":"2025-11-05T12:11:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/25478\/"},"modified":"2025-11-05T12:11:09","modified_gmt":"2025-11-05T12:11:09","slug":"becahi-girls-volleyball-dispatches-middletown-sets-up-showdown-with-state-champ","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/25478\/","title":{"rendered":"Becahi girls volleyball dispatches Middletown, sets up showdown with state champ"},"content":{"rendered":"

Bethlehem Catholic\u2019s girls volleyball team<\/a> hit a pothole on the road to the PIAA Class 3A quarterfinals.<\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t long, however, until the Golden Hawks were back on course.<\/p>\n

Bethlehem Catholic defeated visiting District 3 runner-up Middletown 25-18, 15-25, 25-15, 25-15 in the first round of the state playoffs<\/a> on Tuesday night.<\/p>\n

The Golden Hawks (24-1) advance to meet District 1 champion Pope John Paul II on Saturday at a time and site to be determined.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe worked so hard to get here, and it\u2019s so exciting and amazing,\u201d sophomore Morgan Ostrosky said. \u201cIt\u2019s such a good feeling.\u201d<\/p>\n

After opening a 7-0 lead and cruising to victory in the first set, Bethlehem Catholic was out of sorts in the second frame. Middletown freshman Brynn Jones registered back-to-back kills to give her team a 10-3 lead. That advantage swelled to 18-8 after a block by senior Lena Jones. Senior Katelyn Wagner sealed the set for the Blue Raiders with a kill at 25-15.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey took over the game because we weren\u2019t passing as well as we were, and we definitely were not swinging as well as we were, in the first, third and fourth (sets),\u201d Bethlehem Catholic coach Jessica Attieh said.<\/p>\n

\u201cInstead of playing how we play, we got comfortable and it showed in the second set,\u201d Ostrosky added.<\/p>\n

With the match tied 1-1, Attieh reinforced the game plan and stressed the elimination of unforced errors as Bethlehem Catholic huddled after Set 2.<\/p>\n

The Golden Hawks used a 10-point run to turn a 10-7 deficit into a 17-10 lead in the third set. Junior outside hitter Jocelyn Bell tallied three kills during the stretch, and Middletown was beset with a handful of errors.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe had to find it in ourselves. We worked all season to get to where we were, and we all needed to find it in each other,\u201d Ostrosky said. \u201cThe second set was eye-opening. We needed to step up and we needed to be better … The third set, we were just together the whole time, and it kept going. Then in the fourth set, we kept that momentum.\u201d<\/p>\n

Golden Hawks junior setter Piper Ruggiero capped the third segment by dumping a ball to the floor at the conclusion of the longest rally of the evening.<\/p>\n

Ostrosky sandwiched a pair of aces around a point from Ruggiero to give Becahi a 5-0 advantage to start the fourth set, and the hosts never trailed. Sophomore Anna Schwartz\u2019s serve fell inside the back line to close the match and clinch the Hawks\u2019 trip to the next round.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe realized how many points we were giving up from our errors, from not hustling, from not talking,\u201d Ostrosky said. \u201cCommunication is so big on defense, and we weren\u2019t doing it. In the third set and fourth set, we started communicating more, working together more and going for everything.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ostrosky led the Hawks with 15 kills during an efficient performance that included just one hitting error.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe rose up to the pressure. It\u2019s not easy being an underclassman and stepping up into a role like that on varsity,\u201d Attieh said. \u201cShe crushed it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bell and senior Sophia Bedics added 13 and 12 kills, respectively. Ruggiero had eight kills.<\/p>\n

Junior libero Madeline Ahner, who celebrated her 1,000th career dig after the match, paced the defense with 24 digs.<\/p>\n

Becahi, which topped previously unbeaten Southern Lehigh<\/a> for the District 11 3A crown, has won four straight matches since being upended by Emmaus in the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference final.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt wasn\u2019t a good thing that we lost, but it was a good thing that we got something to make us more hungry for the win,\u201d Ruggiero said of the EPC setback.<\/p>\n

The Hawks are in the state quarterfinals for the first time since 2022. Becahi was eliminated in the semifinals of that tournament by Pope John Paul II, which went on to win the first of its three consecutive PIAA titles.<\/p>\n

Pope John Paul II (19-2), which has only lost to District 1 4A champion Spring-Ford, is the second-ranked 3A team in the state by the Pennsylvania Volleyball Coaches Association (Becahi is ranked third). The Golden Panthers feature senior middle hitter Norah Busch, a North Carolina State recruit.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe know they\u2019re going to be really good,\u201d Ruggiero said. \u201cThey have a lot of D-I commits on their team. Our defense is going to help us a lot, and so is talking to our hitters, so they can find spots to place the ball.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ostrosky believes that it\u2019s going to take a complete team effort to knock PJPII off its throne. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe all have each other\u2019s backs; I think we know that,\u201d Ostrosky said. \u201cEspecially now that it\u2019s the postseason, we need to have each other now more than ever.\u201d<\/p>\n

PIAA 4A<\/p>\n

Emmaus (21-4) swept District 2 champion Delaware Valley 25-22, 25-16, 25-13 on Tuesday to advance to the 4A quarterfinals. The Green Hornets will meet D-1 champion Spring-Ford (the No. 1 team in the classification, according to the PVCA poll) on Saturday.<\/p>\n

D-11 4A champion Parkland was defeated by Bishop Shanahan, the fourth-place team from District 1. The Trojans (18-6) lost in four sets (18-25, 25-23, 25-20, 25-21).<\/p>\n

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