Eight seniors strengthen Sailors

A few days before the final high school match of the season, Newport Harbor High boys’ volleyball coach Dan Glenn stressed a message to his seniors.

There was more to be said than the fact that this CIF Southern Section Division I final today would be their last match together.

Glenn wanted to remind the seniors about another truth.

A CIF championship is not just about this season, he told them, the crown has been four years in the making.

The seniors quickly understood. They’ve worked hard to build for a special team this year, but from Glenn’s words they realized they’d been working since they arrived at Newport Harbor.

Tonight’s their chance to complete the task, as the top-seeded Sailors (31-3), winners of 21 straight, face No 2-seeded Mira Costa (31-5) of Manhattan Beach for the CIF Division I title at Cal State Dominguez Hills at 7:30.

“It’s really incredible. The last four years have been leading up to this match,” said Jamie Galey, one of eight Harbor seniors. “To walk away with a championship would be really incredible. I know that we’re capable of doing it. The deciding factor will be the seniors. I don’t think any of us want to go out on a loss.”

Galey, as well as Kyle Caldwell, Tucker Peleuses, Mark Liebermann, Andrew Kaban, Max Volz, Luc Heasley and John Puppo remember the hurt from last year when the Sailors ended the season on a loss. It was a shock the season came to an end in the second round of the playoffs.

“I guess we can say it was a good thing because we came back this year [angry],” said Peleuses, a team captain who is headed for USC. “It fired us up from the beginning. We kind of just said, we’re all seniors so we’re not going down without leaving everything on the court. Hopefully now together as seniors we’re going to do the best we can one more time.”

The Sailors were certainly at their best Wednesday night, when they swept past Santa Margarita in the semifinals.

The victory was an illustration of Newport Harbor’s hard work but it also proved to be an example of the strength from its unity.

The togetherness can be seen among the Sailors seniors, who always seem to be hanging out with each other — after practice, before practice; before matches, after matches.

After Newport Harbor swept Santa Margarita, the seniors went out for some sushi. Then they wound down in the jacuzzi at the Balboa Bay Club.

“We tend to do that,” Peleuses said of the seniors lounging in the jacuzzi. “We’ll sit in there, be mellow and talk about stuff. Pretty much whatever we think of, whatever comes to mind.”

They can kick back in the water, but once practice or game-time comes along, they’re all business. And if any one of them gets out of line, Caldwell will be there to put them back in line.

It’s little wonder why the Sailors call Caldwell, “Big Dog.”

He’s a team captain and the catalyst for Harbor. Bound for UCLA, he’s regarded as the top high school player in the nation, showcasing a versatile game as a premier setter.

While he recognizes that most eyes are on him during a Sailors match, he’s quick to point out the importance of his teammates. He knows they’ll only make him better.

Asked of who is Harbor’s best non-senior on the team, Caldwell responded, “It’s not about one person. It’s about the whole team. You can’t pass well and you can’t win without everyone else. Everyone has to step up and be big.”

Caldwell and Peleuses provide guidance for the Sailors, but there’s always a need for comic relief and that’s where Volz steps in. Peleuses calls him, “the quirky kid who always has something to say that will make you laugh.”

However, even Volz knows the importance of tonight’s match. Twenty-one straight wins and the label as the top seed hardly do anything for Volz. He said several challenges remain.

“There’s room for improvement,” he said of the Sailors. “I think we showed what we are capable of doing Wednesday night, but we need to show more energy and not let the ball hit the floor.”

Seven of the seniors do most of their work on the court, but Puppo serves as an inspiration for every day life. Two years ago, he was diagnosed with hypercatrophic cardiomyopathy, a serious heart condition. His manner of taking it all in stride has drawn respect from teammates and given Glenn another reason to smile.

Galey is known as the team’s scholar. While there are intelligent players on Harbor’s squad, there’s hardly anyone who can match wits with Galey.

He carries a 4.43 grade-point average and is set to graduate in the top 3% of his class. In the fall, he’ll attend USC, where he’ll be enrolled in the Marshall School of Business.

Liebermann, who’s sometimes called “Leebo,” like Volz, is also known to be a jokester. But, he too is just as competitive when the ball is in play. He’s going to play volleyball at UC Santa Barbara next year.

Kaban, a libero, said he plans to play for UC San Diego. Volz said he’ll play at Orange Coast College.

As a future Bruin and a future Trojan, Caldwell and Peleuses know they will become rivals shortly after they turn their tassels next month. But for now they’re in this together, trying to get the Sailors past the hump and win the school’s fourth CIF boys’ volleyball title, the first since 1999.

“They’ve all contributed,” Glenn said of the seniors, “My biggest concern was getting them to there, what I mean by there is past the second round, once we got past that we were playing league champs the rest of the way. We played some good teams. I knew that when this team played a team they respected that they would show up.”

The past three years have been disappointing for Harbor with losses in the quarterfinals (2005), first round (2006) and second round (2007).

But the Sailors believe that will only make tonight sweeter.

“We’re real confident,” Caldwell said. “If we play our game, it’s hard to stop us. We’re a senior-led team. It’s hard to close us down.”

STEVE VIRGEN may be reached at (714) 966-4616 or by e-mail at [email protected].