Field hockey and cross country are in the books for 2023, with Padua and Salesianum taking home state championships in Division I cross country. More hardware will be earned this week when the volleyball season comes to a close on Thursday night in Newark. One Catholic school is still in the hunt for that title. Soccer follows on Saturday in Dover, and there are two Catholic schools still in contention.
Football is in the first week of its postseason. That will be handled in a separate story.
As usual, check schedules to ensure that game days, times or locations do not change. Tickets for soccer and football are available at https://gofan.co/app/school/DIAA. Volleyball tickets for semifinals and finals can be purchased at the University of Delaware ticket portal.
Girls
Volleyball
Monday, Nov. 13
No. 9 Tower Hill (17-1) vs. No. 4 Ursuline (14-3), approximately 7:30 p.m. at the Bob Carpenter Center, Newark. The Raiders are in the semifinals for the first time since 2019, and their task is a tall one. Don’t be fooled by the No. 9 seeding. The Hillers won the state title last year as the ninth seed, and this year, they upset No. 1 Saint Mark’s to reach the semis. Tower relies on a strong front line and quality play from the libero on defense, so the Raiders’ frontline defenders will need to be at the top of their game. Ursuline dealt the Hillers their lone loss this season.
Thursday, Nov. 16
Tower Hill-Ursuline winner vs. winner of No. 3 Caesar Rodney vs. No. 2 Smyrna, 6:30 p.m. at the Bob Carpenter Center. The other finalist will come from the Henlopen North for the first time in tournament history, and either the Riders or Eagles are very capable of winning it all. Both teams have experienced, powerful hitters who have given opponents fits all year. Smyrna needed five sets to get by the Riders in the regular season.
Boys
Soccer
Tuesday, Nov. 14
No. 11 6 Saint Mark’s (11-5-1) vs. No. 2 Wilmington Friends (13-2-1), 6:30 p.m. at Abessinio Stadium The Spartans advance to this Division II semifinal matchup with a 1-0 win over the third seed, Caravel, which is a more defensive-minded team than Friends. This game has the potential to be a track meet on the turf at Abessinio. The trio of Robert Lohkamp, Ujay Bhuva and Connor Terribile pace the Quakers, while Daniel Selekman patrols the goal. They’ll face a Spartans team with a number of capable goal scorers. The hero of the Caravel win, however, was goalkeeper Ryan Betts, who turned away everything sent his way.
Wednesday, Nov. 15
No. 3 Salesianum (12-3-1) vs. No. 2 Delcastle (14-1-1), 6:30 p.m. at Caravel. The Sals will be favored in this Division I semifinal despite being the lower seed, but coach Scott Mosier no doubt will make sure his team does not take the Cougars lightly. Delcastle’s lone loss came in the regular-season finale at Milford, the team the Sals defeated to get to the semifinals.
Saturday, Nov. 18
Saint Mark’s-Friends winner at winner of No. 5 Indian River vs. No. 1 Sussex Academy, noon at Dover High School. Division II final.
Salesianum-Delcastle winner vs. winner of No. 4 Wilmington Charter vs. No. 1 Cape Henlopen, 2 p.m. at Dover High School. Division I final.
