OCC has share of PCC title

HUNTINGTON BEACH — Midway through the third game at Golden West College on Friday, Orange Coast men’s volleyball coach Travis Turner put in freshman outside hitter Chris Hale.

Hale got a chance immediately and recorded two straight kills, much to the delight of his teammates on the bench. He was so happy, he ran back to serve. But there was just one problem.

“Chris, it’s not your serve,” Turner yelled.

Hale calmly walked back toward the net.

“Thank you,” he said in a much quieter voice.

But it was hard to argue with Hale and his teammates getting so pumped up. Minutes later, the Pirates completed a 30-23, 30-21, 31-21 sweep of the Rustlers, clinching at least a share of the Pacific Coast Conference title.

Sophomore Matt Knutson had a team-high 11 kills, Corona del Mar High product Kevin Welch had 10 kills and 10 digs and sophomore Neil Bell added 10 kills and five blocks.

Freshman middle blocker Rick Schroeder had a very strong opening game for Coast and finished with eight kills and seven blocks.

Sophomore setter Trevor Holmes, an Estancia High product, had 42 assists.

Freshman libero Sean Woods, a Newport Harbor High product, had a high serving percentage for OCC.

The team effort helped the Pirates (16-3, 10-2) clinch a share of their first conference title since 2002.

“It feels great,” said Turner, the first-year coach who won back-to-back state titles as a player for the Pirates in 1989 and ’90. “Especially the way we started in the fall, I didn’t think we’d be anywhere near having a shot at this. The guys have worked really hard and they deserve it.”

The Pirates now play the waiting game. Although OCC’s regular season is over, Grossmont (9-2 in conference) and Irvine Valley play on Wednesday night. If Grossmont wins, Turner said the Pirates will receive a bye in the Southern California Regional first round and automatically advance to the semifinals on April 27 at Santa Monica College.

If Irvine Valley wins (assuming it was victorious Friday), OCC may instead host a first-round match on April 24.

But one thing was clear on Friday at Golden West: the focus of the Pirates. They went on an 8-0 run midway through the first game against the Rustlers (4-14, 2-9), capped by consecutive blocks from Schroeder, to grab a 17-7 lead they wouldn’t relinquish.

Games 2 and 3 were even more dominant, as OCC started with leads of 9-0 and 10-2, respectively.

“[The Pirates] were all about business tonight,” Golden West Coach Steve Uchytil said. “You could tell, they were running at the ball and making sure the momentum kept going in their direction.”

Holmes, who missed the Pirates’ 2006 playoff loss to Santa Monica with a broken hand, said he is ready this time around.