Although it did not win a CIF title this season, Mira Costa’s boys volleyball team completed another successful season while showing constant improvement throughout the 2015 campaign.
The Bay League champions lost at rival Loyola Thursday evening making it a much closer match than when the Cubs swept the Mustangs in March.
Third-seeded Mira Costa took second-seeded Loyola to the limit before dropping a 25-17, 16-25, 15-17, 28-30, 15-12 match in the CIF Southern California Division1 Regional semifinals.
Jackson Wedbush led Mira Costa (25-7) with 24 kills, Carter Kimble had 12 kills and three blocks, Roy McFarland added nine kills and Blake Markland recorded eight kills, three blocks and two aces. Setter Jon Kielbasinski posted 53 assists for the Mustangs.
Loyola (31-2) was led by a number of players from the South Bay. Palos Verdes’ Luke Nassif recorded a team-high 18 kills while Manhattan Beach residents Matt Reilly and Kyle Jasuta had 16 and 15 kills, respectively.
Loyola will face Huntington Beach (39-0), the nation’s top-ranked team, who defeated Buchanan 25-20, 25-15, 25-22 in the semifinals. The Oilers improved their winning streak to 103 matches and will meet Loyola for the third straight year in the Regional championship match on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. at Cerritos College.
In the Division 2 semifinals, El Segundo (26-8) fell at second-seeded Oak Park 25-18, 25-19, 25-16. Oak Park (35-5) will play top-seeded Corona del Mar (30-5) for the title at 5 p.m.
