Redondo girls rolls in state volleyball tournament
Lara Dykstra hits angles the ball to score one of her 17 kills against Long Beach Poly in the CIF Division 1-AA championship match. Photo
Moments after the Redondo girls volleyball team lost the CIF Southern Section-Ford Division 1A championship match, team members gathered together on the court of Cypress College while Long Beach Poly celebrated the school’s second CIF title in the sport.
With only four seniors on the Redondo roster, the strength of veteran leadership was apparent. There were no tears and the Lady Sea Hawks held their heads high knowing they left everything on the court in the 25-20, 16-25, 25-23, 25-22 loss to one of the top four ranked teams in the state.
They also knew their season was not over. The strength of the division would give the team a berth in the CIF State Volleyball Championships. Redondo’s record and demanding schedule earned the team a fourth seed in the eight-team Southern California Division I playoffs.
“There’s no question that the disappointment of losing the CIF title match was eased by knowing we lived to play another day,” Redondo coach Tommy Chaffins said. “I loved the look in the girl’s eyes. Literally, within 10 seconds of the last point being scored, the girls said “Let’s get ready for state” and were refocused.”
The Sea Hawks refused to let the defeat bring them down and Chaffins was optimistic going into the state tournament where his squad had to travel to take on L.A. City Division 1 champion Granada Hills in the opening round Tuesday.
Nicole White had seven kills in Redondo’s sweep over Granada Hills in the first round of the CIF State Championships. Photo
“I hope our strength of schedule will pay dividends,” Chaffins said. “We must have one of the highest RPI (Rating Percentage Index) in the country.”
The high caliber of competition did indeed help. Redondo (30-8) handed Granada Hills (33-4) its first defeat since it fell to El Dorado in the Redondo Power Classic on Oct. 30 with a 25-20, 25-16, 25-17 sweep over the Highlanders.
With setter Blake O’Brien out with the flu, Olivia Bustamante filled in admirably recording 34 assists. Lara and Skylar Dykstra each had a game-high 11 kills. Freshman Brianna Lanktree added eight kills and two blocks and Nicole White had seven kills and two blocks in the winning effort.
Meanwhile, two hours to the south, Redondo was receiving help from an unexpected source. Eighth-seeded Redlands East Valley (30-4) shocked top-seeded La Costa Canyon, who was listed 11th in the PrepVolleyball.com Century Club National Rankings.
The upset keeps Redondo at home where they’ll host Redlands East Valley in the second round Saturday at 7 p.m. The Sea Hawks and the Wildcats are ranked 32nd and 33rd in the nation, respectively. Redlands lost to Marymount in the CIF Division 1A championship.
The winner of Saturday’s contest will face the winner between second-seeded Long Beach Poly and sixth-seeded Marymount in the Southern California finals. The State Championship will be held Saturday, Dec. 4 at The Event Center on the campus of San Jose State University.
Redondo would like nothing better than to have the opportunity to avenge its loss in the CIF Division 1-AA finals by facing Poly for a third time this season.
The two teams initially faced each other in the final of the Redondo Power Classic tournament on Oct. 30 when Redondo jumped ahead by winning the first game 16-25 before dropping the next two sets 25-17, 17-15.
The Sea Hawks could not get the upper hand on Poly last Saturday, falling to the Jackrabbits 25-20 in the first set, although the team rebounded after falling behind 21-12.
Senior setter Blake O’Brien recorded 29 assists against Long Beach Poly. Photo
Redondo’s momentum carried over to the second match. After going ahead 4-3, the Sea Hawks pulled away to even the match with a 16-25 victory.
In the third game, Redondo held an 11-6 lead when Poly went on a 4-0 run to pull within one. After a see-saw battle that saw the Sea Hawks hold a 21-19 lead, Poly went on another four-point run and didn’t look back.
Redondo held a brief 8-7 lead in the fourth game but Poly rattled off six consecutive points and pulled away.
Lara Dykstra led Redondo with 17 kills and 22 digs. Skylar Dykstra added seven kills and 13 digs, Lanktree recorded six kills, Tiffany Morales had 10 digs and O’Brien contributed with 29 assists.
“Poly is a senior-laden team that has the best middle 1-2 combo around,” Chaffins said. “They also have three kids that hit the pins. That’s why they’re ranked 13th in the nation.”
Chadwick advanced to the second round of the Division III playoffs where the third-seeded Dolphins will travel to take on second-seeded Canyon Crest Saturday at 7 p.m.
After winning the CIF Division 3A championship, Chadwick (29-0) remained undefeated with a 3-1 victory over visiting Independence in the opening round Tuesday. ER