Boys volleyball: No Welch, no problem

Steve Virgen

CORONA DEL MAR - Steve Conti hoped Friday’s five-game match would

serve as a wake-up call for his Corona del Mar High boys volleyball team.

Turns out, the five-game victory over host Ocean View served as the

ultimate smelling salt.

The Sea Kings came back swinging Tuesday, and as Coach Conti put it,

they took care of business with a 15-2, 15-8, 15-2 CIF Southern Section

Division IV Playoffs second-round victory over visiting South Pasadena.

“I was kind of disappointed how we came out on Friday at Ocean View,”

said Conti, whose team advances to the quarterfinals, hosting Harvard

Westlake Friday at 7 p.m. “I think we came out with more of a purpose

tonight. We know our next opponent is going to be a very good opponent.

At this point in the season, you gotta play with a purpose because every

match it’s: You lose. You’re done.”

Conti also said he was pleased that CdM’s purposeful play allowed

junior Bart Welch to rest a sore ankle, which he injured in the first

game of the match on Friday. Welch, who Conti said has been improving his

status with each day, plans to be ready for Friday’s match.

Welch rested mainly because of CdM’s imposing play in Game 1, which

set the tone for the match. Conti had the opportunity to play all 13 of

his athltes as CdM junior setter Spencer Miller led the way with 20

assists, one service ace and one kill, while senior Ryan Inman struck for

nine kills.

“The key thing for us this year is getting out to good starts in big

matches,” Conti said “When we’ve been able to get out to a good start,

we’ve been able to carry it out throughout the match.”

Corona (16-6), the Pacific Coast League’s third-place representative,

built a 7-2 lead, receiving three straight points off of Tiger errors,

prompting a South Pas timeout. The Tigers (16-7), the champions of the

Rio Hondo League, committed 10 errors for Sea King points in Game 1,

eight in Game 2, and eight more in Game 3.

“It’s kind of hard to see what they were like (coming into Tuesday)

from watching video I had,” Conti said. “(Kevin Cram) was unstoppable in

that match. I don’t know if he had an off night (Tuesday). I think for us

it was just playing at home and not having to travel, and just the

prestige that Corona del Mar has in volleyball. It’s a big advantage.”

CdM’s serving, which led to four aces, also kept the Tigers out of

sync.

“We weren’t in a rhythm,” said South Pas Coach Todd Terzian, whose

team finished fourth in the Rio Hondo League last year and missed the

playoffs. “(The Sea Kings) played their good, solid game that we were

expecting out of them. We would have had to play our best volleyball so

that we could be close to being competitive and then maybe we could get a

break. But we were out of sync, and part of that was some of the things

they were doing, particularly on defense.

The momentum got rolling their way and we couldn’t find a way to pull

them down.”

The Tigers battled with CdM in Game 2 and earned their first leads of

the match, 4-3, 5-3. But, the Sea Kings outscored South Pas, 12-5, the

rest of the way, which featured three straight points with senior John

Grod serving, and four straight points when Miller was serving.

With Grod serving, CdM tied the match, 5-5, after Inman went up for a

block. He followed it up with another block for the Sea Kings’ lead.

Then, Grod served for an ace.

“Spencer’s setting was incredible,” Inman said. “He was money with

every set.”

Miller lived up to his teammate’s words, serving for four straight

points in Game 2. Miller assisted one of Grod’s six kills and served for

an ace, for a 10-7 lead, that led to a South Pas timeout.

“We came out quick and they got a little nervous,” Miller said. “I

don’t think they were ready for us. They got a little tentative and they

kind of fell apart.”

After the timeout, the Tigers committed an error, and then 6-foo-6

junior Eric Jones planted a kill. Jones slammed three kills in each of

the first two games and two more in Game 3.

Corona built an 8-1 lead in Game 3, as the Tigers gave six points away

on errors. Down the stretch, CdM finished the match with two straight

points with senior Charlie Stafford serving. The Tigers had another error

and then junior Brandon Sherrick-Odom slammed a kill on a junior Greg

Gabriel assist to end the match.