St. Monica Academy volleyball’s Therese Boles reels in top CIF accolade

Less than a month after helping the St. Monica Academy girls’ volleyball team win the program and school’s first CIF championship, Therese Boles picked up some postseason recognition.

Boles, a senior outside hitter, was selected All-CIF Southern Section Division V-AA Player of the Year after the Southern Section office unveiled the All-CIF first teams for all 10 divisions Monday.

Boles was awarded the honor for the first time after the Crusaders won the International League championship before rallying from a 2-0 deficit to knock off top-seeded Tarbut V’Torah in the championship match at Rio Hondo College on Nov. 21.

Senior middle blocker Rose Goodwin and junior setter Molly Hagen of St. Monica, along with sophomore outside hitter Paige Singleton of Glendale Adventist Academy, also earned All-CIF honors.

“It’s super cool to receive an honor like that,” said Boles, who helped the Crusaders advance to the CIF State Division V quarterfinals. “It still hasn’t sunk in yet that we won CIF, but this is a very big honor.

“We had a team of talented players who knew what they had to do. We were successful because of that. It’s just something you won’t forget.”

St. Monica Coach Darren Bradley, who was named the division’s coach of the year after the Crusaders finished 25-5-2 and 7-0 in league, said Boles provided the Crusaders with leadership and a steady presence on offense.

“I had some people from Tarbut V’Torah coming up to me after the match asking me about Therese,” Bradley said. “They wanted to know who she was.

“You can see the different things that she does so well. She’s serious about being a leader and setting a high standard for the team. She’s an outstanding hitter and one of the best players we’ve had here. She’s deserving of the honor.”

Bradley, whose third-seeded team registered a 16-25, 21-25, 25-13, 25-17, 15-11 win against Tarbut V’Torah, said Hagen and Goodwin were crucial to the Crusaders’ success.

“Rose was a four-year player who gave us even more leadership and offense,” Bradley said. “She showed improvement each year.

“Molly went from being a libero to setter and we don’t win without her. She gave us a lot of confidence.”

Singleton propelled the Cougars to the Independence League championship and an appearance in the Division V-A quarterfinals.

Singleton was named the league’s most valuable player after helping Glendale Adventist finish 17-3, 8-0. The Cougars were eliminated by champion Upland Christian Academy, which also advanced to the Division V state final.

“She had been a middle blocker and we thought she could do some good things at outside hitter,” Glendale Adventist Coach Gared Luquet said. “She gave us a go-to player we could count on.

“It’s great to see her get that kind of recognition, plus it’s very good for the program.”

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Charles Rich, charles.rich@latimes.com

Twitter: @TCNCharlesRich