And then there were four.

Defending champ Hempfield, Manheim Township, Penn Manor and Conestoga Valley — all Section 1 combatants — punched their tickets into the Lancaster-Lebanon League boys' volleyball semifinals with victories Monday night.

And there will be no rest for the weary: Those teams will be back on the court tonight for the semis, set for 6 p.m. at Penn Manor. The championship match is Thursday at 6:30 p.m. at Warwick.

Monday night at Hempfield, the host and Section 1 champ Black Knights steamrolled Section 2 fourth-place finisher Elizabethtown 3-0, and in the nightcap, Section 1 third-place finisher Conestoga Valley knocked off Section 2 runner-up Garden Spot 3-1.

And at Lancaster Mennonite, the host and Section 2 champ Blazers were bounced by Section 1 fourth-place finisher Penn Manor 3-2, and in the nightcap, Section 1 runner-up Manheim Township outlasted Section 2 third-place finisher Manheim Central 3-2.

Tonight, Hempfield will face Manheim Township at 6, followed by Hempfield against Manheim Township at 7:30.

In Monday's matches:

Hempfield 3, Elizabethtown 0

25-11, 25-11, 25-8

Ohio State recruit and reigning L-L League Player of the Year Shawn Sangrey teed off against the Bears with 17 kills, seven service aces and five blocks for the Knights, who cruised into the semis.

"Shawn is a complete player," first-year E-town coach Bobby Crick said. "He's so fundamentally sound. He's always in position and his form and his technique are spot-on. He's ready for anything all the time. That's what sets him apart.

"When he gets the ball, he does what you're supposed to do with it. He's certainly one of the best players to ever come through here. He's in that discussion for sure."

Josh Mealy chipped in with five blocks and five kills and Pat Donohue had five kills for Hempfield, which is ranked fourth in the state despite just one returning starter — Sangrey.

"We're still coming together this late in the season," Hempfield coach Mike Vogel said. "We're at the 11th hour and the 59th minute. It's still a work in progress, and who knows what's going to happen. This is a completely new team, with the exception of Shawn."

"Our goal," Vogel added, "is to keep playing."

Hempfield has won 14 of the last 18 league titles.

"That's our goal — to win again," Sangrey said. "The more experience the younger guys can get, the better they're going to play."

Kris Savoie had four kills for E-town.

Penn Manor 3, Lancaster Mennonite 2

23-25, 14-25, 25-19, 25-23, 15-8

The Comets spotted the host Blazers a 2-0 lead before roaring behind for the victory, winning the last three games in a row behind Jordan Weber, who pounded a match-high 21 kills, and Pete Welch, who had five blocks to help spark Penn Manor.

Kendall Garber had 17 kills and a block for Mennonite, which couldn't seal the deal.

Manheim Township 3, Manheim Central 2

18-25, 22-25, 25-19, 25-17, 15-8

It was a tough luck night for the Barons, who jumped out to a 2-0 lead, but couldn't hold off the Blue Streaks, who won three games in a row, burst Central's bubble, and advanced.

Tyler Rodichok had 19 kills and Cameron Hoerner had four blocks for Township, while Steve Strait had 15 kills and four blocks for the Barons.

Conestoga Valley 3, Garden Spot 1

25-18, 25-20, 19-25, 25-17

Joe Hughes and Chris Cannon had 10 kills apiece and the Buckskins rode the hot serving hands of Nick Stoltzfus and Sam Xiong to a victory over the Spartans.

CV jumped out to a 2-0 lead, then closed the match out in the fourth game behind Stoltzfus, who opened the game with five service winners in a row, and Xiong, who won seven service points in a row, helping the Bucks overcome a 14-13 deficit.

"Sam used a long serve, and that's really a pain to return," CV coach Al Kofroth said. "It gives them a different angle to make passes on the inside. Sam did a really good job with that. … Garden Spot is so dangerous. We tried to play a smart game and slow the game down and play one point at a time."

It worked.

"We have up too many unforced errors … too many balls in the net, too many balls out of bounds. Those sorts of things," Garden Spot coach Scott Garber said. "We gave away too many points. CV didn't give away many points."

"It was a total team effort," CV's Kevin Wile said. "We were able to key our blockers on certain hitters, which was big. And getting up 2-0 was also a big plus. After the third game we talked about getting our intensity back up, and we were able to get our passing game going again."

Dan Smucker had 15 kills to pace Garden Spot.

Sports writer Jeffrey Reinhart can be reached at jreinhart@LNPnews.com or 291-8777.