Pa. Boys: Surprising defense leads Kensington to title

Kensington

's first Public League title in volleyball came from an unexpected source - its defense.

The Tigers relied on their offense this season, but the defense came through, and Kensington beat

Masterman

, 25-16, 25-17 and 25-19, for the title at Community College of Philadelphia.

"Our defense was almost flawless today," Tigers coach Carole Cipriano said. "That's something that plagued us most of the season, and our offense really carried us throughout [the season]. But today our defense was solid."

Manny Acosta paced Kensington with 14 kills, four aces and three blocked shots. Hector Then added seven kills, two aces and six blocks, and Jesus Reyes chipped in with 31 assists.

Haverford School

teammates Mike Kania and Nelson Hargrove had to go to a playoff hole to decide the Inter-Ac League individual championship at Merion West.

Both fired even-par 70s, but Kania shot a par on the first playoff to take the title. Corey Siegfreid of Haverford finished third with a 72 to give the Fords the top three places.

Archbishop Ryan

came through with a run in the top of the seventh inning and edged host

Conwell-Egan

, 3-2, in a Catholic League quarterfinal playoff game.

In the seventh inning, Jon Schmidt drew a walk, Nick Ferdinand picked up an intentional walk, and Jerry Smith loaded the bases with an infield single. Schmidt then scored the deciding run on an error.

Bob Steffney pitched the final three innings with two strikeouts to get the win in relief for the Raiders, who will meet

Monsignor Bonner

in a semifinal game today at Widener University at 3:45 p.m.

In another quarterfinal game, Bonner got 10 strikeouts and a win from Conor Kerins and beat visiting

Kennedy-Kenrick

, 8-1.

Lou Tomasetti powered the offense with two singles, two runs batted in, and a run scored.

St. Joseph's Prep

reached the title game with a 5-1 win over

Neumann-Goretti

in a semifinal game at Philadelphia University.

Perry Russom hit a two-run double and Kyle Mullen earned the win for the Hawks, who will meet the winner of the Archbishop Ryan-Monsignor Bonner game for the title at Widener University at 4 p.m. Tuesday.

District 1 Class AAAA.

Keith Meyer blasted a two-run homer in the fifth inning and sparked No. 4 seed

Council Rock South

to a 10-0 win over visiting No. 13 seed

Garnet Valley

.

District 1 Class AAA.

Rob Gow and Chris Orlando drove in runs and led visiting No. 3 seed

Marple Newtown

past No. 2 seed

Harriton

, 6-4, in a quarterfinal game.

In other quarterfinal games:

Visiting No. 5 seed

Unionville

upset top seed

Holy Ghost Prep

, 10-7.

Ian Yakub, Pete Hissey and Ryan Walsh each hit RBI doubles in a three-run seventh inning for the Indians.

Pat Sheridan hit a game-winning home run and led top-seeded

Sun Valley

past visiting No. 4 seed

Springfield (Delaware County)

, 6-5.

Sheridan was 3 for 4 with two homers, a double, two runs scored, and four runs batted in.

District 1 Class A.

Mike Connelly had a huge game and propelled No. 2 seed

Delco Christian

past visiting No. 7 seed

Friends Select

, 10-0, in a quarterfinal playoff game.

Connelly hit a three-run homer in the fourth inning along with a single and a double and drove in five runs. On the mound, he held the Falcons to one hit over five innings and struck out seven while walking two.

No. 3 seed

Morrisville

scored three runs in the bottom of the seventh inning and stunned visiting No. 6 seed

Bristol

, 7-6.

Ernie Santone drove in a run in the seventh with a single and later scored the winning run on a bases-loaded walk.

Pa. Independent Schools.

Mike Mattei struck out 12 and Jon Kuneck ripped a pair of doubles as

Chestnut Hill Academy

downed visiting

Mercersburg Academy

, 7-3, in a quarterfinal playoff game.

In other quarterfinal games:

Matt Ricci hit a two-run homer in the second inning and Colin Kish added a two-run shot in the third inning to lead

Germantown Academy

past visiting

Hill School

, 4-3.

Pete Rosa earned his seventh win of the season after pitching three innings with three strikeouts and a walk.

Malvern Prep

's Chris Gosik set a school record with his 10th home run of the season and led the Friars past visiting

Germantown Friends

, 10-0.

Gosik's two-run shot broke Phil Gosselin's school record of nine, set last season.

Jesus Colon earned the win with a 10-strikeout performance and boosted

Perkiomen School

to a 3-1 opening-round win over visiting

Church Farm

.

Ian Vasquez paced the offense with two singles and a run scored.

Randy Forster struck for four goals and helped

La Salle

beat visiting

Garnet Valley

, 10-4, in the opening round of the Eastern Pennsylvania Scholastic Lacrosse Association tournament.