Wyoming Valley West Gets Behind Early, Falls To Council Rock

3 Council Seats Open In Exeter

Tuesday, November 06, 2001 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 4E 





Class 2A &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The draw: Seminary, the District 2 champ, drew the fifth-place team from
District 3 for its opener. That turned out to be Oley Valley, which won state
titles last year and in 1997. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; ``They didn't look like a fifth-place team to me,'' said Klassner, who got
a chance to scout the Lynx in the District 3 fifth-place game on Saturday.
``What we saw on Saturday is that they are a steady team.'' &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 So how do you beat a defending state champ? Klassner said it will take a
mistake-free game on the part of her team. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ``We feel that they're going to try to take our passing game away,''
Klassner said. ``That may require a little more individual effort on our
part.'' &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Lehman, the District 2 runner-up, drew the District 3 runner-up for its
opener. That turned out to be Lancaster Mennonite, which was last year's state
runner-up. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The ironic thing about this matchup is that it is a first-round battle
between a pair of potential state finalist. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 What's next: The Seminary-Oley winner takes on the Palmyra-Phoenixville
winner in the quarterfinals on Saturday. The Lehman-Mennonite winner takes on
the Christopher Dock-Northwestern Lehigh in the quarterfinals on Saturday. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The favorites: In the top-half of the 16-team bracket, Palmyra (25-0-2),
Lehighton (22-1) and the Seminary-Oley winner appear to be the most likely
candidates to advance to the state final. The Lehman-Mennonite winner figures
to have a great chance of making it to the final from the bottom half of the
bracket. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Class 3A &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The draw: Wyoming Valley West, the District 2 champ, will try to avoid
becoming another WVC team to hit ``The Rock''. Council Rock, the fifth-place
team from District 1, has made playoffs appearances 10 of the past 11 years.
Its list of post-season victims includes Crestwood and Delaware Valley. In
fact, the Indians defeated Delaware Valley, 3-0, in a first-round state game
at Betlzer Fields last year. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 This year's Rock isn't considered to be as formidable as last year's team.
Of course, that may be akin to saying Michael Jordan isn't as formidable as he
used to be since his comeback in the National Basketball Association. Both are
still pretty darn good. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 As for Valley West, the Spartans have already made it farther than they did
last season, when they were district runner-up. That's one of Valley West's
annual goal, and any state playoff victories can be considered going above and
beyond for a very young team. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 What's next: The Valley West-Rock winner will play the Central Bucks
East-Nazareth winner in the state quarterfinals on Saturday. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The favorites: The two best teams in the state are considered to be Emmaus
(22-1) and Warwick (23-1). They're on a collision course to meet in the
semifinals in the bottom half of the 16-team bracket. Lower Dauphin (20-2-3)
and Central Bucks East (21-2-1) are the teams to beat in the upper half of the
bracket. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 STATE FIELD HOCKEY PLAYOFFS &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Class 3A &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Wyoming Valley West vs. Council Rock, 2 p.m. Betzler Fields. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Class 2A &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

Class 2a