STATE’S ELITE 4 ADVANCE TO CHAMPIONSHIPS
Rarely has a season in women's volleyball been mapped out as early as things were in 2014. From the second state rankings of Sept. 15, the top four ranked teams remained the same. And it was those elite four that completed their regional playoff runs to advance to the CCCAA Championships this weekend.
The undefeated trio of No. 1 Cabrillo, No. 2 Irvine Valley, and No. 3 Grossmont secured victories as did No. 4 Feather River in Round 3 of the regionals Tuesday night.
In fact, the No. 2 early season poll featured seven teams ranked in the then top eight that went on to play in the regional finals.
NORCAL REGIONALS
#1 Cabrillo d. #5 Foothill, 3-1 (25-20, 25-20, 20-25, 26-24)—The defending state champion Seahawks extended their winning streak to 61 matches, but had a string of 67 consecutive winning sets snapped by the underdog Owls in a matchup of the two Coast Conference champions. The victory means Cabrillo will continue to play at home the remainder of the postseason as it hosts the '14 state tournament. Seahawks' All-American OH Kelsey Shaver ripped 23 kills and made 13 digs, but struggled a bit against Foothill's block with an uncharacteristic .190 kill percentage. All-Region MB Madison Borch was more efficient with 13 kills (hit .500) and six blocks. All-Region SET Tyler Gasologa dished out 54 assists while Cabrillo MB Patrice Williams was a surprise weapon with 10 kills, only the second time this year she's reached double figures. Gasologa also spread the wealth to RS Morgan Matias (eight kills) and OH Alex Flores (eight kills). Grace Ryan led the defense with 17 digs. Foothill's attack was provided by All-American OH Riana Brennan, who pounded 20 kills and made 12 digs, and OH Kallan Bedard, who doubled up on 10 kills and 10 digs. The team's blocking wall of MB Nicole Christie, OH Allison Clark, setter Morgan Ho, and MB Nicole Brown combined for 11 block kills. Ho added 30 assists and 12 digs and LIB Cowie Kurosawa totaled 15 digs. Foothill finishes at 22-6. Cabrillo (30-0) advances to CCCAA Championships.
#2 Feather River d. #3 American River, 3-0 (25-20, 26-24, 25-16)—The only state finalist to not lose a set in the regionals were the Golden Eagles, who swept the Beavers after beating them at the start of the season in five sets. Feather River won its ninth straight thanks to a defense that recorded 63 digs, 19 by All-American LIB Nina Holmes. All-Region OH Marinda Thomas scored eight kills
and made 12 digs while MB Stephanie Ovitz slammed 10 kills and had three blocks. FRC had a 2-0 lead in the first meeting between the teams before ARC stormed back to force it to five. In this one, after sweating out an extra-point win in set 2, the Golden Eagles dominated the final set to close out the match. All-State OH Taylor Bunger and All-Region libero Kiana Chaney each saw their ARC careers come to an end.
American River finishes at 22-7. Feather River (25-2) advances to CCCAA Championships.
SOCAL REGIONALS
#1 Irvine Valley d. #4 El Camino, 3-1 (25-17, 25-15, 23-25, 25-16)—The Lasers snapped the Warriors' 16-match win streak but El Camino stole a rare set in Irvine's 24th straight victory. IVC All-American MB Annie Mitchem put on a clinic as she hit .593 on 17 kills, made 13 digs and added seven blocks in another stalwart playoff performance by the 2-time Orange Empire Conference MVP. All-Region OH Marissa Doran added 11 kills and 13 digs. OH Kobi Pekich chipped in seven kills, a team-best 14 digs and three aces while SET Hailey Jones added 42 assists, 12 digs and three aces. El Camino trailed 19-15 in the third set, but rallied to snap the Lasers' 38-set winning streak. However, the Warriors had hitting woes throughout the match, finishing with 35 attack errors. In the fourth set, Irvine Valley took a 12-6 lead and coasted the rest of the way. ECC All-American MB Kim Haney was limited to seven kills and one block. OH Darlene Lee scored 14 kills, 13 digs, and two aces. OH Nickeisha Williams added 11 kills. Defensively, Brooke Russell was a force with 28 digs.
El Camino finishes at 24-3. Irvine Valley (24-0) advances to CCCAA Championships.
#2 Grossmont d. #3 Cypress, 3-2 (16-25, 25-18, 23-25, 25-14, 15-12)—The Griffins twice got a taste of going deep in matches with 5-set wins during PCAC play v. San Diego Mesa and Mt. San Jacinto. And that experience came in handy as Grossmont rallied from 1-0 and 2-1 set deficits and an 8-7 Chargers' lead in the deciding game for the 5-set comeback victory. Grossmont's All-American OH Lexi Reddick showed her leadership qualities again as she pounded 20 kills, made a team-high 17 digs and had three blocks. Setter Rachel Linden converted 60 assists and spun six aces. MH Brooke Callahan added 14 kills and five blocks and OH Kela Simmons, who did not play in the previous playoff win over Orange Coast, slammed 10 kills. RS Alyssa Cortez had seven block assists. Cypress was 3-0 in 5-set matches going into this one, including going the distance in a Round 2 playoff win over Fullerton. All-Region OH Lindsey Ray led her team with 12 kills, 26 digs and four blocks while MB Makayla Taylor contributed 10 kills and 18 digs. MB Jasmine Covington contributed nine blocks (two solo) and four kills and SET Nae Bender added 38 assists, nine digs and six blocks (four solo).
Cypress finishes at 21-5. Grossmont (28-0) advances to CCCAA Championships.
Release by Robert Lewis, CCCWVCA SID, CCCSIA Executive Board
rmlewis@pasadena.edu; 818-679-1335
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2014 Women's Volleyball State Championship Fact Sheet