Corona del Mar Cruises Past Costa Mesa
Corona del Mar boys’ volleyball Coach Steve Conti knows it’s not always this easy. The top-seeded Sea Kings dismantled their third consecutive playoff opponent Friday, sweeping Costa Mesa, 15-1, 15-10, 15-8, in a Division III quarterfinal match at Costa Mesa.
“As we move further along in the playoffs, I expect to see more competitive matches,†Conti said. “Wednesday will bring a much tougher opponent.â€
Corona del Mar (12-5) will meet fourth-seeded Encino Crespi in the semifinals on Wednesday. The Sea Kings hope a victory will lead to a rematch with second-seeded Santa Ynez, which beat Corona del Mar in the final last season.
“Santa Ynez is one of the teams we’ve been shooting for all season,†junior Dennis Alshuler said.
The Sea Kings have had an easy road in the playoffs so far. They opened with a three-game sweep of Brethren Christian May 15, then needed only 58 minutes to sweep Whittier Christian Tuesday.
Costa Mesa (12-6) is not used to reaching the playoffs, much less advancing to the quarterfinals, but the Mustangs made it by also defeating two Olympic League opponents, Cerritos Valley Christian and Calvary Chapel.
Costa Mesa never had a chance to make the opening game interesting against Corona del Mar. The Sea Kings scored nine consecutive points behind the serve of Mike Jackson and took an 11-1 lead. Greg Coon, who finished with 12 kills, finished the game when he crushed an overpass straight down to the floor.
Costa Mesa briefly took the lead twice in the second game, but the Sea Kings reeled off another string of points to take a 10-5 advantage. The Mustangs were able to pull within one before Coon ended the game with block against Shaun Ferryman.
Corona del Mar surged to a 7-1 lead in the third game and didn’t let Costa Mesa within four points the rest of the way. Greg Burden ended the 70-minute match with his team-high 14th kill.
In Division II:
Tustin 3, Mater Dei 2--Daniel Dizon had 22 kills for Tustin (15-4), which won, 15-12, 8-15, 15-7, 12-15, 15-5. Tustin will play Redondo Union, which defeated second-seeded Santa Barbara, 15-13, 15-12, 15-6.
Pat Cope had 21 kills to lead third-seeded Mater Dei (16-2).
Goleta Dos Pueblos 3, Servite 0--Fourth-seeded Dos Pueblos won at home, 15-3, 15-9, 15-2. Servite ended 16-3.
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