Mira Costa’s boys volleyball team ran the table while losing only two sets in Bay League action this season to reclaim the league championship from rival Redondo.
That was the good news. The bad news is that the Mustangs will face a tough test in their quest for a CIF title with a field of powerful teams ahead of them.
Mira Costa (21-4) in seeded fifth in the CIF Southern Section/Ford Division 1 boys volleyball championships presented by Farmers and will host Dos Pueblos (12-6) Tuesday. All matches with the exception of the finals are slated to begin at 7 p.m.
Coach Sean Shoptaw’s Mustangs are ranked No. 7 in the nation (and in the state) but CIF-SS Division 1 includes seven of the top-ten nationally ranked teams according to MaxPreps.
Mira Costa defeated visiting Redondo 25-14, 25-20, 23-25, 25-20 in the Bay League finale with Blake Markland leading the way recording 17 kills, four blocks and two aces. Jackson Wedbush added 12 kills and 11 digs, Roy McFarland posted nine kills, six aces and 11 digs and Jonathan Kielbasinski contributed with 50 assists.
Lucas Lossone led the young Redondo team with 15 kills and five digs. Setter Sean-Michael Cramer had 29 assists.
Mira Costa had one last tune-up before postseason action begins facing a record-breaking Huntington Beach team.
The Mustangs were swept 25-21, 25-16, 25-13 by the host Oilers, which was not totally unexpected as Huntington Beach is in the midst of the longest winning streak in CIF-SS boys volleyball history. The nation’s top-ranked team enters the playoffs having won 95 consecutive matches dating back to March 18, 2013.
Yet Shoptaw feels the match will benefit his team.
“We always schedule the toughest opponents we can,” Shoptaw said. “It shows what we need to focus on and the work we need to put in to win a CIF championship.”
If Mira Costa can get by Dos Pueblos, it will face the Servite-Laguna Hills winner in the second round on Thursday.
Bay League runner-up Palos Verdes (21-11) hosts Thousand Oaks (14-17) in the first round with the winner likely facing second-seeded Loyola (26-1) who is ranked No. 2 in the nation and includes many South Bay players on its roster.
Redondo (20-12) finished third in the Bay League and must travel to No. 8 San Clemente (26-6)m ranked No. 4 in the nation by MaxPreps.
In Division 2, Pioneer League champion Torrance (22-7) hosts Hillcrest (11-7) while Pioneer runner-up South Torrance (13-11) travels to No. 8 Crescenta Valley (25-6). West Torrance (17-15) plays at third-seeded Burroughs/Burbank (27-3).
El Segundo (17-5) earned the top seed in Division 3 and hosts the Mission-Fillmore wild-card winner in the first round while Del Rey runner-up Bishop Montgomery (18-13) is ranked No. 7 and hosts Highland (16-6-2) on Tuesday,
Prep League runner-up Chadwick (12-6) plays at Oxnard (12-14) in Division 4 action while Vistamar (17-4) is ranked No. 7 in Division 5 and will host Waverly 6-4) on Tuesday.
Brackets and results are available at cifss.org.
