CdM returns to CIF finals
MANHATTAN BEACH — Corona del Mar High and Manhattan Beach Mira Costa played for a second time this year, under far different circumstances than the first meeting.
Six weeks ago, the two boys’ volleyball teams faced each other in Hawaii, opening the Clash of the Titans. Laid back is how CdM Coach Steve Conti described the atmosphere inside Punahou High in Honolulu, while Matt Ctvrtlik said it felt like he was on “island time.”
Ctvrtlik was playing for only the second time this year when Mira Costa beat the Sea Kings in five sets back then. A sprained ankle had sidelined him.
Wednesday’s matchup between CdM and Mira Costa turned out to be more intense and it took place on the mainland with a lot more at stake. The programs played in the semifinals of the CIF Southern Section Division 1 playoffs at Mira Costa. Conti still wanted his players to have fun, despite entering a hostile environment.
The Sea Kings definitely enjoyed themselves. They swept top-seeded Mira Costa, 25-17, 25-21, 25-23, to advance to the section finals for the second year in a row.
In 13 days, CdM has taken down the No. 3, No. 4 and No. 1 teams in Division 1. Next on the schedule for the Sea Kings is No. 2 Los Angeles Loyola.
The Sea Kings (27-5) and Cubs (27-2) will square off in the section championship match at Cerritos College on Saturday. Loyola defeated Beckman, 24-26, 27-25, 25-17, 25-20, in the semifinals at home on Wednesday, preventing a Pacific Coast League finale.
“Our team is starting to play the best volleyball toward the end of the year,” Conti said. “We’ve been able to grow, just because I think we’re coming together a little bit later than other teams due to some injuries and kids coming from other sports.”
The Pacific Coast League champion Sea Kings are used to defeating Beckman. As for Loyola, CdM has lost to the Cubs four times in the last five tries. The most recent setback was at CdM on April 16, when Loyola prevailed, 25-22, 25-21, 23-25, 25-22.
The lone CdM win against the Cubs during the stretch came in the semifinals a year ago at Loyola, where the Sea Kings swept. In the postseason, CdM has put away three teams in three sets. If you count the regular-season finale, a sweep at No. 3 Newport Harbor in the Battle of the Bay rivalry, the Sea Kings have looked like the top team in Division 1.
“Coach always talked about us peaking at the end of the season,” Ctvrtlik said. “I think we’re doing that right now, and it’s such a great feeling.”
No team had swept Mira Costa (25-6) in a best-of-five match this year, until CdM pulled it off on Wednesday. The Sea Kings ended the Mustangs’ season with a balanced attack, and stellar play from outside hitter Sam Kobrine, middle blockers Mitch Haly and Will Hunter, and Ctvrtlik, a setter.
Ctvrtlik, who finished with 32 assists, four kills, one solo block, three block assists, four digs and a service ace, moved the ball around. Kobrine led the team with 11 kills, but it was CdM’s middles coming up big.
In 25 attempts, CdM’s middle blockers combined for 20 kills, with only two errors. Hunter had 10 kills in 14 attempts and Hunter nine kills in 11 attempts. Mira Costa had no answers for the 6-foot-6 Haly or 6-3 Hunter. Hunter added five block assists and Haly had three block assists.
In Game 3, CdM turned away six shots. The first was a duo effort by Hunter and Brandon Browning and it gave the Sea Kings a 14-13 lead, their first advantage in the third set.
Kevin Kobrine, Sam’s younger brother, delivered one key solo block and a crucial block assist in Game 3. The first stopped USC-bound opposite Jackson Wedbush, Mira Costa’s one-man show, to put CdM in front, 15-13. The next broke a 22-22 tie, as Kobrine and Haly stuffed Roy McFarland. The Mustangs called a timeout, but there was nothing getting in the way of CdM making its 12th section finals appearance under Conti.
Out of the timeout, Sam Kobrine dribbled the ball between his legs before he ripped a jump serve. Browning finished things with a kill, his sixth, putting CdM at match point. After a service error, the Sea Kings closed things out on a lift violation by Mira Costa.
The Sea Kings are rolling into the finals, having won their last six sets. They rallied from two sets down at home in the quarterfinals against No. 4 Huntington Beach, the three-time defending section champion, on Saturday, just to get to the semis.
The finals trip is a special one for Kobrine and Ctvrtlik. The two have played for a section title before, as juniors last season on the basketball and volleyball courts, coming up short each time.
This is it for the seniors, before Ctvrtlik heads off to Harvard and Kobrine to UCLA. Going out as section champions is the goal.
“We’ve been walking the same road for a couple of years now,” Ctvrtlik said. “I think it means more to us than anybody.”
