CdM stuffed against REV again

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CYPRESS — There will most likely be a variety of words that could make the Corona del Mar High girls’ volleyball team feel disappointed today.

Regret, runner-up and deja vu might be those words that would trigger sadness for the Sea Kings.

Yet, the most dangerous words would actually be a name: Krista Vansant.

The 6-foot-2 junior outside hitter pounded 22 kills to hold off CdM and lead Redlands East Valley to a third straight championship in CIF Southern Section Division II-AA Saturday at Cypress College. The top-seeded Wildcats won, 25-21, 25-17, 15-25, 26-24, beating No. 2-seeded CdM in the section title match for the second straight year.

“I’m definitely upset,” said senior setter Madie Smith, who had 45 assists and 10 digs. “We came in here and we had a lot of momentum and belief. I believe in my team. I’m so appreciative for everyone who came out and supported us. Our fans kept supporting us even though we were losing. I think everyone gave it their all. We did what we could. We just couldn’t stop [Vansant].”

Two of Vansant’s final three kills weren’t really pounded. She used a light touch from the back row to throw off the Sea Kings.

CdM (28-6) nearly forced a fifth set, as the Sea Kings had game point, up 24-23, after rallying from a 20-16 deficit. To grab the lead, senior Sydney Brombal and junior Claire Ham teamed up to block Vansant, who was trying for a back-row kill in the middle of the court.

Vansant had another back-row attempt, but she went with a tip to tie it up, 24-24. Then again the Wildcats (34-3) went to Vansant in the back row and she quickly slammed it for a point. She used another floater from the back row to give REV the victory.

“It was amazing,” Vansant said. “There are no words to describe how I felt when that ball hit the floor.”

Even though REV entered as the top seed, the Sea Kings came in with plenty of confidence, sweeping their three matches in the playoffs prior to the final.

During the summer, CdM beat the Wildcats in two games during a tournament in Lake Forest.

Many in Division II-AA knew REV would be a different team this year as the Wildcats lost three key players, two middle blockers and an outside hitter, to graduation.

“We definitely knew we had a lot of work to do,” said REV Coach Tricia Vansant, Krista’s mother. “At first it was a big struggle. I think once they realized they could do it, they started to do it. A weakness of ours was the competitiveness.”

Kirsta Vansant was competitive for sure. Senior Johnna Fouch, a setter bound for San Diego State, also pumped up the Wildcats with 31 assists.

In the first set, CdM built a 17-12 lead, but Fouch and Vansant guided REV back for the victory.

“[Vansant] never really stops looking for a way to score,” said Darryl Gan, a CdM co-coach with Jim Downey. “She’s always trying to find what’s going to work and that makes her good ... Her vision is really good. That just comes from playing at a high level for a long time.”

Both Gan and Downey said lack of ball control proved to be the Sea Kings’ demise in the first two games

“We’re obviously disappointed,” Downey said. “I think we had a much better shot this year. I really thought we were going to win the fourth. We finally got the block on Vansant on the back row and then later two tips dropped. We were up 24-23. If we win the fourth I thought we would have a very good chance to win the match.”

Junior Morgan Boukather led CdM to the win in third set, recording seven of her team-high 18 kills. Ham served for seven straight points, collecting one of her two aces for the match, as the Sea Kings went up 19-11.

Senior Amanda Nickel, who will play at Brown, also had a great match for the Sea Kings, contributing 15 kills and two aces. Junior Hailey Senske added eight kills, while Brombal had 13 digs and junior Katelyn Baker had 12 digs.

“What made this match harder to lose is [Brombal, Smith and I], we’ve been to the finals three times,” Nickel said. “Our freshman year and last year and this year, we were hoping the third time would have been a charm. But it wasn’t.”

Smith, who’s bound for the University of San Diego, hopes for another matchup with the Wildcats in the state playoffs. The pairings will be announced today. Last year, REV swept CdM in the Southern California Regional final.