Boys volleyball: Dream Team

Barry Faulkner

When it comes to postulating how members of the Daily Pilot’s 2001

All-Newport-Mesa District Dream Team would fare on the same side of the

boys volleyball court, there is little left to the imagination.

In fact, due to their mutual affiliation with the Balboa Bay Club

program, as well as the recent placement of six seniors on the same team

in the annual Orange County All-Star match, the four honorees from each

half of the Back Bay rivalry between Corona del Mar and Newport Harbor

high schools, have, no doubt, spent more time competing with than against

one another season.

Newport Harbor captured bragging rights with a 15-17, 15-12, 15-6, 11-15, 15-9 nonleague triumph May 4 in the lone Newport-Corona matchup

this spring.

However, team supremacy aside, the Dream Team is about individual

recognition and these eight athletes have definitively proved themselves

deserving.

Newport Harbor senior outside hitter Blake Tippett, the lone repeat

honoree, tops this year’s squad as Player of the Year.

CdM, co-champion of the Pacific Coast League, is represented by

seniors Brian Gallagher, Evan Burden, Charlie Alshuler and Forrest Mack,

while Newport Harbor juniors Loyd Wright and Greg Perrine, as well as

senior Christian Berg-Hansen, round out the honorary squad.

Steve Conti, whose ability to get his teams to peak in the postseason

helped the Sea Kings push through to the CIF Southern Section Division IV

title match, their fifth straight trip to a CIF final, is the Coach of

the Year.

Tippett, at 6-foot-3, was a dynamic presence at the net for the

Sailors, who went 13-8, en route to the CIF Division III semifinals.

Despite missing time with a sprained ankle, as well as a brief bout

with mononucleosis, the USC-bound standout was the Sailors’ go-to

performer. He shared Most Valuable Player honors in the Sea View League.

Also a skilled passer and an effective blocker, Tippett collected 20

kills and eight blocks, despite having returned from a brief mono-induced

absence, in the aforementioned win over CdM.

Burden, the Most Valuable Player in the PCL, stepped out of the

shadows of the back row to trigger the Sea Kings’ attack with aplomb this

season.

Bound for USC, where his older brother Greg was the starting libero as

a junior this season, Burden joined Tippett on an Orange County All-Star

team that defeated a group of all-stars from the South Bay, June 2.

“He’s real scrappy,” Conti said of Burden. “That’s one of the things

that separates him.”

Gallagher, a 6-foot-3 left-hander, also enjoyed more of the spotlight,

after starting as a role player for the 2000 Sea Kings, who defeated

Newport Harbor in the Southern Section Division I title match.

Though Conti stresses balance and often substituted liberally in the

string of one-sided matches that can occur in the PCL, Gallagher was

consistently the Sea Kings’ kill leader. He was one of only two effective

hitters for CdM in the title match loss to Santa Ynez.

In addition to his statistical prowess, Gallagher, the team captain,

was a valuable role model, according to his coach, who consistently

praised his work ethic.

A first-team All-PCL performer, Gallagher plans to continue to play at

UC Santa Cruz.

Alshuler, an All-CIF and all-district selection in football last fall,

was also a starting forward for the basketball team. Volleyball, however,

is his best sport and he plans to continue with the club team next year

at the University of Michigan.

A 6-3 outside hitter, the first-team All-PCL performer’s athleticism,

competitiveness and well-rounded knowledge of the game, helped him spur

the Sea Kings to their 15-7 record.

Mack, an imposing 6-7 middle blocker, stepped up his game in the

playoffs. He had seven kills and a match-high seven stuff blocks in a

quarterfinal victory over Bishop Montgomery, in which the Knights could

not find an answer to his offensive and defensive prowess in the middle.

He then led all CdM hitters with 17 kills in a semifinal upset of

top-seeded and previously unbeaten Village Christian.

Mack, a second-team All-PCL honoree, plans to play next season at

Orange Coast College.

Berg-Hansen, a 6-5 middle blocker, was another consistent presence at

the net for the Sailors. He collected 19 kills and five blocks to help

put the Sea Kings away and continually provided Wright a setting option.

The first-team All-Sea View League pick is bound for the California

Maritime Academy.

Wright, whose sophomore season was marred by a broken hand, was the

architect of Coach Dan Glenn’s offense. With more than a year of varsity

experience, the first-team All-Sea View selection is one reason why the

Sailors are expected to contend for a section championship next season.

Perrine, an athletic 6-0 outside hitter, made valuable contributions

as a hitter and passer. His 24 kills against CdM earned him match-high

honors, while he also added five stuff blocks.

The starting point guard on the basketball team the last two seasons,

Perrine’s ability to compete under pressure also serves him well. He

earned second-team All-Sea View League honors this season.