The Hanover Area Hawkeyes are taking a road trip to face off against the Blue Ridge Raiders at 5:00 p.m. on Friday.
Last Wednesday, Hanover Area didn't have quite enough to beat Wyoming Valley West and fell 3-2. The Hawkeyes haven't had much luck with the Spartans recently, as the team has come up short the last three times they've met.
Hanover Area took Wyoming Valley West into a fifth set but they suffered a heartbreaking three-point loss. Once all was said and done, the final score wound up at 25-18, 25-23, 17-25, 22-25, 15-12.
Ireneo Panecatl
| 04/16/25 vs Wyoming Valley West | 7 |
| 04/15/25 vs Hazleton Area | 2 |
| 04/08/25 @ Berwick | 2 |
| 04/02/25 vs Dallas | 3 |
| 03/31/25 @ Tunkhannock | 1 |
| + 2 more games |
The loss doesn't tell the whole story though, as several players had good games. One of the most active was Ireneo Panecatl, who had 15 digs, seven aces, five kills, and four blocks. With that strong performance, he is now averaging an impressive 2.5 aces per game. The team also got some help courtesy of Davyn Piatt-Ferreira, who had 18 kills, 14 digs, two aces, and one block.
Blue Ridge extended their winning streak to four games thanks to a huge performance from Bryce Conklin. The Raiders blew past Scranton 3-0 on Thursday with plenty of help from Conklin, who had 20 digs and four aces. Piatt-Ferreira has been hot, having also posted five or more kills the last seven times he's played.
The final score came out to 25-13, 25-16, 25-11.
Hanover Area's loss dropped their record down to 3-6. As for Blue Ridge, their win bumped their record up to 8-3.
Here's a few offensive stats to keep an eye on ahead of Friday's game: Hanover Area has really dialed in their serving this season, having averaged 7.4 aces per game. However, it's not like Blue Ridge struggles in that department as they've been averaging 8.5 aces. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Hanover Area might still be hurting after the 3-0 defeat they got from Blue Ridge in their previous matchup back in March of 2024. Can the Hawkeyes avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
