Pacifica Christian boys’ volleyball sweeps Sage Hill in league opener
For having been in the San Joaquin League together for only four seasons — with one being interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic — Pacifica Christian Orange County and Sage Hill have quite the history in boys’ volleyball.
The season prior to joining the San Joaquin League, the Lightning eliminated the Tritons from the CIF Southern Section Division 4 playoffs in the wildcard round in 2018.
A year ago, the tables began to turn, as Pacifica Christian swept the home-and-home league set, taking six out of seven sets in the process.
Pacifica Christian looked poised to remain in control of the battle between the two Newport Beach private schools, as the Tritons came away with a 25-10, 25-8, 25-19 win over the Lightning at home in their league opener.
Buzz Hodson had eight kills, 10 digs and three service aces to lead Pacifica Christian (5-3), which is the No. 3-ranked team in the Division 4 poll. The senior outside hitter led the Tritons both statistically and emotionally, manufacturing energy to keep his team motivated when the first two sets were well in hand.
“It’s super important,” Hodson said of keeping the energy level up for his team. “We’ve actually been working on our culture a lot at Pacifica. … It’s definitely very important to us to keep our energy high, whether we’re winning or losing. No matter the outcome, we always want good energy, have fun and just play hard.”
Miller Clark had six total blocks and three kills for the Tritons. Danny Dillon had five kills and six digs, and Knox Vail and Will Carlson each had three kills.
Pacifica Christian, which will compete in the Corona Santiago Classic on Friday and Saturday, has lofty goals, Hodson said.
“Win CIF,” Hodson said of his goal for the season. “We’ve been training so hard. Last year, we came close. A couple of us got injured, so we’ve just been so hungry to win our league and just win CIF.”
Pacifica Christian reached the Division 4 quarterfinals before being swept by eventual section champion Marina last season.
As the score indicated on Thursday, the Lightning made a competitive push in the third set, demonstrating improvement in serve receive to get points started.
“What I love about these boys … is there’s no quit,” Sage Hill coach Jimmy Templin said. “We have a core group that has more experience within our [team]. We have a lot of natural athletic ability but not a lot of volleyball experience.
“We kind of have a core four that have that experience that are trying to help our other teammates kind of raise their level, and so together, I think we’re going to be good. It’s going to maybe take us a little while longer to get there, but I think we’ll get there.”
Carter Bryant had a team-high seven kills for Sage Hill (2-5, 0-2). Ryan Dinh had two kills and two aces, and Johnny Mayhew provided two blocks.
“I think we didn’t really play our best game today,” Bryant said, noting that one of the team’s best players, middle blocker Logan Zhou was out with an injury. “I’m really excited to play this team again and see what happens.”
Sage Hill is hopeful for a quick return for Zhou, whom Templin said rolled an ankle this week.
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