Boys’ volleyball: Granada Hills digs deep to win City Section title

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Falling behind didn’t faze Granada Hills one bit in its City finals showdown against Sylmar. Instead, it raised the Highlanders’ level of play.

Granada Hills fought off six game points in Game 1 and overcame a late deficit in the pivotal third game to prevail 31-29, 16-25, 25-23, 25-15 Saturday night at Roybal Learning Center in Los Angeles.

The victory capped off an undefeated season for the second-seeded Highlanders, who won their third City championship in four years and earned an automatic berth into the Southern California Division I regional playoffs.

‘I don’t think we played our best match but I give Granada Hills a lot of credit,’ Sylmar Coach Soheil Mashhoud said. ‘They played great defense and dug a ton of balls. We made some uncharacteristic mistakes and just couldn’t close the games out.’

Sylmar had 10 stuff blocks in the second game and forged a 21-18 lead in Game 3 only to see the Highlanders close on a 7-2 run.

Looking to level the match the top-seeded Spartans opened a 7-2 lead in Game 4. However, Granada Hills once again proved too resilient, allowing just eight points the rest of the way.

West Valley League teams have now won 10 of the last 11 City Section titles.

-- Steve Galluzzo