With less than a week left in the regular season, the boys volleyball teams from Mira Costa and Redondo are preparing for the post season by playing matches against high-caliber opponents and this weekend’s Redondo Varsity Classic tournament will provide the competition both teams are looking for.
The 32-team tournament will be held at Redondo, Mira Costa and South Torrance high schools on Friday and Saturday and features schools from Valencia to San Diego including five of the top ten CIF Southern Section Division 1 teams and eight of the top 15 in the nation including San Diego area powerhouse squads Westview (No. 7) and Otay Ranch (No. 8).
The competitive field includes Alemany, Beverly Hills, Burroughs, Cerritos, Chaminade, Dana Hills (No. 7, Div. 1), Foothill, Hart, JSerra, La Costa Canyon, La Jolla, Loyola (No. 1, Div. 1), Millikan, Mira Costa (No.3, Div. 1), Mt. Carmel, North Torrance, Oak Park (No. 1, Div. 2), Otay Ranch, Oxnard. Palisades, Peninsula, Redondo, San Clemente (No. 8, Div. 1), Santa Monica (No. 4, Div. 4), Scripps Ranch, South Torrance (No 1, Div. 3), Torrance, Valencia (No. 4, Div. 2), Warren (No. 3, Div. 3), West Torrance, Westlake (No. 5, Div. 1) and Westview.
The championship match is scheduled for 2 p.m. Saturday.
Despite a disappointing second-place finish in the Karch Kiraly Tournament of Champions in Santa Barbara where it was swept by Esperanza, Mira Costa is preparing for a deep run in the playoffs while picking up another Bay League title along the way.
Although the 23-25, 20-25, 23-25 loss did not drop Mira Costa from the No. 3 spot in the CIF Southern Section Division 1 poll, it did move Esperanza into the second slot behind Loyola who remains the top team in the nation in the ESPN Powerade Fab 50 rankings. Esperanza also jumped up three spots to No. 3 in the nation while Mira Costa dropped two spots into fourth.
The Mustangs finish the Bay League season with matches against their two closest league competitors when coach Mike Ninnis’ squad hosts Redondo Thursday at 7 p.m. and Palos Verdes on Tuesday at 3:15 p.m.
Mira Costa swept West on Tuesday to improve its overall record to 17-4and remain undefeated in league play at 6-0. Scott Stephanoff and Matt Tsao recorded six kills apiece, Keith Waddell added five kills and 10 digs and Duncan Lau had 15 digs in the victory.
Palos Verdes (No. 30 in the nation) swept Redondo and Peninsula for the second time this season setting up a chance to gain a share of the Bay League championship if the Sea Kings can upset Mira Costa in Fisher Gym next week.
Mira Costa defeated Palos Verdes 25-23, 25-19, 25-21 in its first league meeting on April 12 after returning from a spring break trip to Hawaii where the Mustangs enjoyed wins over Hawaii Baptist and Punahou, the 34th and 6th ranked teams in the nation, respectively.
Redondo is ranked No. 49 in the nation and wraps up league competition Tuesday with a 4:30 p.m. match at Peninsula.
Head coach Duncan Avery is making sure his Sea Hawk squad is battle tested before the post season. After defeating a much improved West team, Redondo played Palos Verdes tough in a 25-23, 25-23, 25-18 loss. Redondo rebounded to defeat Harvard-Westlake in four sets and but lost to visiting Loyola 25-17, 25-19, 25-13 in a non-league match on Tuesday.
“Redondo volleyball is known for having a rigorous non-league schedule,” Avery said. “Before playoffs begin, we will have faced at least seven schools that have been ranked at least once in the top ten Division 1 poll. This type of competition can only help us prepare for playoffs. With a young team, it definitely can hurt our confidence. However, the guys have not only responded to these challenges but have competed in every match.
“Our team has improved tremendously from day one to now. The guys have bought into our system and every player has developed. We still have some inconsistent play in stretches but the team is training hard and they always give their best effort.”
Avery is pleased with the development of his young team, particularly the play of sophomore Louis Richard.
“Richard had a career best 26 kills and a .781 hitting percentage against Harvard-Westlake,” Avery said. “He took 103 swings in the three matches last week. It was a great week of competition going into the next few matches. Every year Loyola and Costa are the top teams in the country. We will have to play flawless volleyball if we want a chance to take them down but our young squad is up for the challenge.”
