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Los Angeles Times
28-03-2025
- Sport
- Los Angeles Times
Ocean View boys' volleyball in playoff hunt despite loss to rival
Ocean View's boys' volleyball team couldn't beat its archrival, but the program is in the midst of what could end up being its first winning season since the coronavirus pandemic. The Seahawks took a 25-13, 25-23, 25-21 loss at Westminster on Thursday in an Orange Coast League game, but the visitors remain in contention to end a prolonged CIF Southern Section playoff drought. It has been six years since the Seahawks ran the table in the second half of the Golden West League to clinch third place and reach the postseason. That Ocean View squad — coached by Joshua Nehls and led on the court by do-it-all setter Hunter Miller — reached the Division 5 semifinals. In the four prior seasons since competition resumed following the pandemic-induced shutdown, the Seahawks had no more than five wins in any single season. They went a combined 4-36 in the Golden West League. Ocean View (11-6, 3-4 in the Orange Coast League) has shown improvement. The Seahawks, in the midst of the second round of three in league play, have earned a win against three of their four league foes — Buena Park, Katella and Santa Ana. Steven Morales, the first-year coach of the Seahawks, said the team and the school are 'excited' to be back in the playoff hunt for boys' volleyball. 'Compared to the past seasons, they're doing pretty well right now,' Morales said. 'They're still in the fight to get second or third in league, and they're going to make, hopefully, playoffs for the first time in six years.' Westminster (13-4, 7-0) is pulling away from the pack, as the Lions look to bring home their first league championship since sharing the Golden West League title with Loara in 2018. The boisterous Lions were in attack mode all match, passing the ball well and providing ample opportunities for their hitters in the front row. 'We tend to focus more on our serve receive and our defense more than us trying to put the ball away, because the teams we play, they are always taller than us,' said Westminster coach Cashmere Webber, in her fourth year with the program. In the second meeting between the teams this season, the Lions knew who to key in on defensively. 'I trusted my libero taking all of the opposite hits, while I usually focused on the tips and all the scrappy balls that it would take,' Lions outside hitter Ethan Au said. 'Other than that, I just have enough trust in our passers and setters to put it up.' Ocean View, which took a set off Westminster in the teams' first meeting, threatened to do it again in the second set. The Seahawks held a 21-14 lead in the game before the Lions stormed back. It took a village for the Lions to dig out of that hole. Au was at the service line for the final six points, including an ace to kick it off. Noah Barajas also had a kill and a solo block on Alex McCarrick that prevented the Seahawks from reaching set point. 'I was just thinking, 'We're down already, so I can't be ripping jump serves,'' Au said. 'I just keep it calm. I just tried to keep it in … for our team to have a chance to make it back.' Kevin Duong had nine kills and two aces to pace the Lions. Benjamin Nguyen had eight kills. Au supplied eight kills and 10 digs. Jaden Tran distributed 18 assists to go with nine digs, and Jacob Truong also produced 14 assists. Ngo finished with 10 digs, and Barajas had five kills and four blocks. An Nguyen had 15 kills, four blocks and an ace to lead Ocean View. McCarrick added four kills. 'I think he knows a lot of the boys on Westminster, and he's a senior, so he's known a lot of those guys a little bit longer, so there's a little bit more of that rivalry for him,' Morales said of Nguyen. … 'I think he went pretty aggressive today. I'm not going to go away from him.' Huntington Beach 3, Los Angeles Loyola 0: Ben Arguello had a team-leading 15 kills for the visiting Oilers in a 25-20, 25-23, 25-18 sweep of the Cubs on Wednesday in a nonleague match. Logan Hutnick added a dozen kills for Huntington Beach (21-2, 5-0), which avenged a five-set loss to Loyola (12-4) in its own gym on Feb. 26. Kai Gan produced 35 assists, Aiden Atencio had 12 digs, and Colin Choi chipped in with eight digs.
Los Angeles Times
31-01-2025
- Sport
- Los Angeles Times
Laguna Beach girls' basketball clinches Pacific Hills League crown
Laguna Beach girls' basketball is already having one of the best seasons in program history, and that can be said without factoring in any potential postseason run. The Breakers were in position to claim their second outright league title — and third overall — heading into senior night. Second-year coach Rus Soobzokov, who endured a 21-loss season in his initial year at the helm, found the turnaround to be reason to celebrate. So much so that he indicated to his team during the week's practices that they would cut down the nets if they finished the job. Senior guard Kate Cheng had 16 points to pace Laguna Beach, which beat Irvine 53-31 to clinch the Pacific Hills League title on its home floor on Wednesday evening. 'They all bought into a new system of playing, defensively, offensive philosophies,' said Soobzokov, who succeeded Mathew Tietz as the head coach. 'They bought into it, worked hard the last two years, and this is what happens as a result of kids buying in, playing well together.' Laguna Beach (18-9, 5-0 in the Pacific Hills League) won its first league title since sharing the Orange Coast League championship with Estancia in 2016. The Breakers finished atop the Pacific Coast League in 2005. Cheng was also part of the two winningest teams in program history. Laguna Beach went 21-13 in her freshman season, when she shared the court with her sister, Anna. The Breakers advanced to the CIF Southern Section Division 5AA semifinals. The following year, Laguna Beach went 23-11 and again reached the CIF semifinals, this time in Division 4A. Sophie Marriner was the star forward of both of those teams, but neither won a league championship while competing as a member of the Sunset Conference's Wave League. 'I also think it was interesting that we cut down the net because it is usually CIF,' said Cheng, holding a piece of the nylon in her hand after the celebration. 'Everyone's hill [to climb] is relative, and I think how [Soobzokov] has been coaching us, it's a big win for him, too, as it is for us. It's just symbolic of how we play together.' Cheng added five rebounds, four steals and four assists, although she had plenty of help with several teammates contributing across the board. Freshman forward Fiona McCormick had 13 points, 12 rebounds, three steals, two assists and two blocked shots. Senior guard Alicia Mendoza had six points, three rebounds, three steals and two assists. Junior forward Lilly Alvarado had four points, 10 rebounds and four assists. 'I like to think that I do a little bit of everything, and I help the team in every way,' McCormick said. 'There's not just one thing I'm focused on. I help everyone around me in defense and offense.' McCormick added that she felt team chemistry had developed through time spent together since the summer. Sophomores Iliana Reider (five points) and Lakelyn Welch (nine points) combined for six additional steals for the Breakers on defense. The CIF Southern Section will release its girls' basketball playoff pairings on Feb. 8. As Laguna Beach prepares for the postseason, Cheng said she wants to 'have fun' while continuing to grow as a team. 'What I would pass down to them is I want to get better every game,' Cheng said. 'If there's a certain play, and there's a look that we want to make, and I didn't [execute] the play before, I want to try to fix it and do better the next time. I think that's what we want to get out of CIF because these girls are going to be playing for the next couple of years, and the experience is amazing.' Senior guard Lauren Lai had eight points, nine rebounds, four steals and two assists to lead Irvine (13-10, 3-2), which is in second place in the league. Sage Hill 63, Rosary 37: The Lightning captured the Pacific Coast League championship with Wednesday's victory at home. Sage Hill (18-7, 7-0) is riding a 10-game winning streak with a chance to run the table in league play when it hosts St. Margaret's on Feb. 4. Corona del Mar 35, Los Alamitos 29: Kayly Honig had 13 points and nine rebounds to lead the Sea Kings to a road upset of the first-place Griffins on Wednesday in a Sunset League game. Sienna Knodegah made four three-pointers to account for her 12 points. Lark Walz also provided five important points in the fourth quarter. Corona del Mar coach Brason Alexander said Mackenzie Kish played her first full game in returning from an ACL injury, supplying key defensive contributions. The Sea Kings improved to 15-10 overall and 7-3 in league, tied with Fountain Valley (15-8, 7-3) and Marina (16-10, 7-3) for second place. Los Alamitos (18-7, 8-2) has a one-game lead over the chase pack. Marina 55, Huntington Beach 42: Rylee Bradley scored 30 points to lead the visiting Vikings past the Oilers on Wednesday in a Sunset League game. Emily Hoang scored a dozen points, and Taylor Savage added 11 points for Huntington Beach (15-11, 5-6). Pacific Hills League Laguna Beach 53, Irvine 31 SCORE BY QUARTERS Irvine 7 - 8 - 10 - 6 — 31 Laguna Beach 14 - 19 - 14 - 6 — 53 I — Lai 8, Mikuma 6, Renteria 5, Choy 3, Dissanayake 3, Qaasim 3, Takenoue 3. 3-pt. goals — Choy 1, Dissanayake 1. Fouled out — None. Technicals — None. LB — Cheng 16, McCormick 13, Welch 9, Mendoza 6, Reider 5, Alvarado 4. 3-pt. goals — Cheng 1, Mendoza 1, Reider 1, Welch 1. Fouled out — None. Technicals — None.
Los Angeles Times
29-01-2025
- Sport
- Los Angeles Times
Costa Mesa rallies past Ocean View, extends streak to five
The Costa Mesa girls' basketball team has become a stampede that the rest of the Orange Coast League doesn't want to see at the moment. Junior forward Leilani Quero had 22 points to pace the Mustangs in a 50-36 win over Ocean View on Tuesday at home. Costa Mesa (12-13, 5-2 in the Orange Coast League) ran its winning streak to five games, a stretch that has seen the Mustangs beat all of their competitors in the league. The streak began with a narrow 57-54 win over Westminster (6-16, 2-4) to cap the first half of league play, and it also featured a 36-32 win over league-leading Laguna Hills (20-4, 6-1). Junior guard Myah Martinez provided eight points, two assists and two steals, and sophomore forward Aaliyah Terry had seven points and eight rebounds, as Costa Mesa earned a split of its home-and-home set with Ocean View (10-16, 3-3). 'This league is very open,' Costa Mesa coach Zedric McKee said. 'A lot of good teams there, from Laguna Hills all the way down to Garden Grove. … I would say our girls are really hungry. They want the win. It's been years since we've gone to a playoff, so everybody this year, they want to make a difference.' Junior guard Emi Kamikihara had six points and seven rebounds, and junior wing Yanelly Martinez chipped in with six points and five rebounds. Costa Mesa did not have a senior in the starting lineup, but center Ariana Mendoza produced 10 rebounds and two assists off the bench on the Mustangs' senior night. 'Ari has been popping off ever since the second half of our league,' McKee said. 'She's been averaging those eight-to-10 rebounds. I'm really happy for her, especially [with her] not starting today, but she understood where we're going in life and where we're trying to go in this program, so she's like, 'OK, cool. I'm going to come off the bench and finish business.'' Outside of a three-pointer from the top of the key by Ocean View leading scorer Angelina Bado on the opening possession, the offenses had an ice-cold start. The Seahawks held a 7-6 lead after the first quarter. Ocean View took its largest lead at 24-17 midway through the third quarter on back-to-back baskets by Dayana Quinonez, the assists going to Bado and Guadalupe Fuentes. Quero had six points and Myah Martinez added five points over the final four minutes of the third quarter, and Costa Mesa drew even with Ocean View, 28-28, entering the fourth quarter. Costa Mesa then outscored Ocean View, 22-8, over the final period. 'Obviously, you want to achieve CIF, like all of it,' Quero said. 'You want to take it all home, but I think it's important to take one game at a time, so we're focused on our next game, and then after that, we'll see what comes and then focus on that.' Bado scored 21 points to go with nine rebounds, four assists and three steals. Natalia Candelario contributed four points, seven rebounds and two steals. Lizeth Ayona had two points and eight rebounds, but she was largely sidelined in the second half after picking up four fouls before halftime. Ocean View would have controlled its own destiny toward a share of the league championship with a win, as the Seahawks close the season at Laguna Hills on Monday, Feb. 3. 'We wanted to compete for the league championship, and I think we could have,' Ocean View coach Ryan Hasegawa said. 'I think this group, when playing together and trusting each other, I think we have all the ability to compete, so I just think we fell short tonight.' Orange Coast League Costa Mesa 50, Ocean View 36 SCORE BY QUARTERS Ocean View 7 - 13 - 8 - 8 — 36 Costa Mesa 6 - 11 - 11 - 22 — 50 OV — Bado 21, Candelario 4, Quinonez 4, Guerrero 3, Ayona 2, G. Fuentes 2. 3-pt. goals — Bado 1, Guerrero 1. Fouled out — Ayona. Technicals — None. CM — Quero 22, M. Martinez 8, Terry 7, Kamikihara 6, Y. Martinez 6, Mendoza 1. 3-pt. goals — M. Martinez 1, Terry 1. Fouled out — None. Technicals — None.
