Salesianum and Archmere have earned berths into the third Delaware Interscholastic Athletic Association boys volleyball state tournament, which begins with four opening-round matches on May 13 and four more on May 14.
Salesianum, the defending state champion, is the second seed. The Sals will host No. 15 Indian River on May 13 at 6 p.m. Salesianum finished with a record of 15-1, with the lone loss coming to Maple Mountain (Utah) at a tournament in Texas in March. Against Delaware teams, the Sals were 13-0 and lost just two sets, both in a five-set win over Wilmington Charter. They did not meet Indian River during the regular season.
Archmere is competing in its second year of boys volleyball. The Auks finished 13-2, a six-win improvement over their first season, and they earned the sixth seed. This will be their first state tournament berth. They will meet the 11th seed, Odyssey Charter, on May 13 at 6 p.m. at home. Archmere’s two losses came to the fifth seed, Odessa, and the fourth seed, Wilmington Charter. The Auks defeated Odyssey, 3-1, on April 1.
With a win in the opening round, Salesianum would host the winner of No. 10 Cape Henlopen-No. 7 Christiana in the quarterfinals. If Archmere wins, they would take on the winner of No. 14 Concord-No. 3 Caesar Rodney at the higher seed’s gymnasium. Those matches are scheduled for May 16 at 6 p.m.
The semifinal matches are scheduled for May 20 at the higher seed’s campus, and the championship will be held May 22 at Smyrna High School. Tickets must be purchased online at www.gofan.co/app/school/DIAA.
