Fox Chapel boys’ volleyball is on a mission in the WPIAL Playoffs. They’re out to make their own legacy.

The last time FC volleyball won a WPIAL championship was back in 2006. The current senior class was still attending Dorseyville Middle School back then, and with dominant frontcourt and a solid rotation in the backcourt, the 2010 team is determined to earn its own hardware.

The road to the WPIAL semifinals for FC was not smoothly its fair share of struggles through the month of April, marked by a non-section loss to Ambridge on April 23. The team won six of their last seven matches (all of the wins in straight games) to finish the regular season at 10-6 and head into the playoffs with plenty of forward momentum.

Despite facing a formidable opponent in the Golden Tornado, a playoff team who took the Foxes to five games in their previous match, FC rolled right along, winning 3-0 in front of a large and loud home crowd.

Seeded fifth in the WPIAL entering the playoffs, the Foxes got one more home game in their first round matchup against Peters Township. FC’s dominant play continued, beating Peters in three games to move on in the tournament.

The team faced a greater challenge in the quarterfinal at Seneca Valley: the fourth-seeded Upper Saint Clair Panthers, who swept the Foxes 3-0 at Fox Chapel on April 19. This was a new FC team, though. After dropping the first game to the Panthers, 25-23, the fortunes turned around.

The Foxes won the second game to tie up the match, and then won the third game after the longest serving run of the game. After the third game win, Fox Chapel did not look back, finishing up Upper St. Clair in the fourth set to move on to the semifinals.

On Tuesday night, the Foxes left for North Hills. What was supposed to be a neutral site turned out to be the opposite. A sea of red filled the stands and completely overwhelmed the parents of Latrobe. The third game was another rout of Latrobe, 25-15, and the Foxes would be going to their third WPIAL Championship in five years.

For the WPIAL Championship, Fox Chapel will be up against section rival, North Allegheny. No longer in the shadow of champions past, the 2010 team has carved its own significant place in the short, but already illustrious history of boys’ volleyball at Fox Chapel.