Newport sweeps state opener

GRANADA HILLS — With not enough chairs to sit on, three girls’ volleyball players tried to stand at the end of the Newport Harbor High bench.

One of the officials told the trio to take a seat on the floor. Each happily obliged.

The Sailors weren’t expecting to stay long at Granada Hills.

Newport Harbor spent more time on the freeway Tuesday than on the court in the opening round of the CIF State Division I Southern California Regional playoffs.

It took the No. 3-seeded Sailors 58 minutes to sweep Granada Hills, 25-17, 25-13, 25-23, and advance to the regional semifinals.

The 70-mile drive home at night turned out to be far worse than the afternoon’s ride to Granada Hills. The Sailors (30-6) won’t hit any traffic jams Saturday, when they play host to a familiar opponent in Huntington Beach.

There are very few gyms Dan Glenn hasn’t seen in Southern California during his 24 years as Newport Harbor’s coach. Granada Hills’ was a first for Glenn.

The Highlanders (23-4) aren’t usually playing volleyball during this time of year. In the dimly lit gym, they tried to put on a show for Coach Tom Harp, days after he guided the program to its first L.A. City Section Division I title.

Tuesday was Harp’s birthday after all. The Sailors ruined the party.

Newport Harbor opened the state tournament right where it left off Saturday when it claimed the CIF Southern Section Division I-AA championship.

After five ties early in the first game, outside hitter Kirby Burnham hammered away at Granada Hills. The USC-bound senior recorded six of her match-high 17 kills during Newport Harbor’s 11-5 run that put away the Highlanders in Game 1.

The big runs continued in Game 2. The Sailors jumped ahead, 20-10, on the strong serving by Maggie Magner. Unlike his Highlanders, Harp saw the Sailors jump serve, making it much more difficult on his team to set up its offense.

All Harp knew of Newport Harbor is what he jokingly said he’s seen on TV three or four times.

“For a change, we were the underdog,” Harp said moments after a Granada Hills player scooped icing from his birthday cake and rubbed it in his face.

The coach almost got tagged in the head by a ball during play as well. He knocked it away before it reached his seat.

Newport Harbor’s balanced attack, featuring Burnham, junior Maddy Brown (10 kills) and senior Katey Thompson (eight kills), was that ferocious. Sophomore setter Cinnamon Sary finished with 35 assists.

For a team playing an intense, four-game title match against Los Alamitos at Cypress College on Saturday, the Sailors looked awfully strong three days later.

“It’s really hard coming off of what we just came off of, [and] to come back and play against a good team [on the road],” said Glenn, a Huntington Beach alumnus who’s glad the next match is at home and against a team he knows quite well.

The Sailors faced Huntington Beach once this season. On Sept. 22, Newport Harbor won a nonleague match at Huntington Beach, 25-22, 25-12, 30-32, 25-22.

The Oilers upset No. 2-seeded La Costa Canyon of Carlsbad, 17-25, 25-23, 15-25, 25-20, 17-15, and have a shot at revenge. The winner Saturday qualifies for the regional final, the precursor to the state championship match at UC Irvine on Dec. 5.

The Sailors need two more victories to reach the big match. It has been 10 years since Newport Harbor’s last state-final appearance.

If the Sailors return, no one on the bench needs to worry about having to stand during a volleyball match. There will be plenty of chairs.