Self-Funded Royal Enters New Realm : Highlanders Start Fast in 1st Season

Bob Ferguson has been coaching volleyball for eight years at Royal High. During that time, he has learned the benefits of a 5-1 offense, a strong outside attack and good passing.

But the most important thing Ferguson has learned is how to get approval from the school’s administration when his team needs to buy something or compete somewhere. “It always comes down to financing and as long as it doesn’t cost them anything, they don’t mind,” he said.

Ferguson took that philosophy with him when he asked Royal’s new principal, Dave Jackson, if he could start a boys’ volleyball team earlier this year. He also took a petition signed by students who wanted to play for the proposed team. And he brought with him the backing of the booster club for the Royal girls’ volleyball team.

He walked out of the meeting with a new team.

“We’ve got a principal that really likes volleyball and he said go to it,” Ferguson said. “He is just a rabid volleyball fan. He asked, ‘Do you think you can raise the money?’ I said, ‘No doubt.’ ”

It will cost the Highlanders about $4,000, including equipment, officials and the coaches’ salary, but the team is on its way to reaching that, according to Ferguson. Team members sold candy and advertising space for a team program and had to buy their own uniforms and knee pads.

“A lot of the little extras, they took care of themselves. We weren’t able to put the frosting on the cake,” Ferguson said. “They not only had to be committed as athletes, they had to be committed as fund-raisers.”

The booster club also has been instrumental in getting the team established. One of the members ran the advertising drive, another got the program printed free and another is in charge of the candy sale. The club is so well-organized, they even know who is supplying the after-game oranges.

And the hard work off the court is helping the team on it. Royal is 6-0 including victories over Hart and Saugus twice, two other newly established teams.

“The kids are loving it,” Jackson said. “They’re enjoying it and there are good crowds. You know, volleyball is a happening thing.”

OTHER TEAMS TO WATCH

Crespi (Southern Section 4-A Division): The Celts, in their second year, have quickly developed into one of the area’s best teams.

“I just want for us to be competitive,” Crespi Coach Kevin Slattum said. “There is a higher echelon and I just want to be competitive with them.”

Last week, Crespi took a step in that direction by defeating Harvard, one of the strongest teams in the Southern Section 3-A. “For us, the Harvard game was a big game,” Slattum said. “They’ve been the best Southern Section team in the area and that was just a really big step for us.”

Crespi is led by Ken Lynch, a 6-4 junior middle blocker averaging 12 kills a game who was also the center for the Celt basketball team.

Steve Lepire, a 6-3 senior outside hitter, had 23 kills against Harvard for the Celts. Lepire spent the off-season coaching Louisville’s freshman volleyball team last season. “He puts in a lot of time and knows a lot about volleyball,” Slattum said.

Chris McGee, a junior setter and outside hitter, and Jimmie Wong, a senior setter, also have been playing well for Crespi (8-0, 3-0 in Del Rey League play).

Harvard (Southern Section 3-A): The Saracens lost two All-Southern Section players to graduation and have as many as five underclassmen starting for them.

“We lost pretty much the whole team,” Harvard Coach Mark Zalin said. “We’re kind of rebuilding, but we’re still a good team.”

Bobby Hillman, a 6-1 outside hitter and setter, returns for his third season as a starter for Harvard. “When he’s playing, he’s the man,” Zalin said.

Unfortunately, Hillman injured his arm in the Dos Pueblos tournament last weekend and has been out a week. Hillman was averaging 30 kills a game during the tournament, Zalin said, but the Saracens used him so much, “he couldn’t lift his arm at the end of the tournament.”

That means there will be even more pressure on Harvard’s underclassmen. “When we’re good, we’re really good. When we’re bad, we’re really young,” Zalin said. “I wouldn’t say it’s a down year, it’s just a young year.”

Geoff Given, a junior setter and outside hitter, was a first-team All-Santa Fe League player last year and is the only other player with varsity experience for Harvard (3-2, 2-0).

Mark Shoptaw, a 6-0 freshman, is the first ninth-grader to make Harvard’s varsity team in Zalin’s eight years at the school and he is starting. “He has all the physical attributes of a volleyball player, but he’s also a smart player,” Zalin said. “He’s doing really well for us. Nothing has fazed him.”

Reseda (City Section 3-A): The Regents have some of the best talent in the area and were considered one of the favorites to win the Mid Valley League and City Section 3-A title before losing to Canoga Park last week.

“We don’t expect to hit our stride until later in the season,” Reseda Coach Bob Berrenson said before the Canoga Park match.

Reseda (3-1, 2-1) is led by a pair of 6-5 All-City middle blockers--senior Mike Marzhal and junior Coley Kyman. “We expect big things from them and so far they’re delivering,” Berrenson said. “They both can dominate.”

Scott Kent, a 6-3 sophomore outside hitter with promise, gives Reseda even more height. “He’s going to be a superstar,” Berrenson said.

Reseda, which tied with Granada Hills last year for the league title, was able to remain a 3-A team even though the Highlanders were moved up to the 4-A West Valley League. “I’m glad we are where we’re at because I want to win it all,” Berrenson said.

And even if the Regents had moved up, Berrenson believes they also would have been successful at the 4-A level.

“I don’t see anyone around that matches up with us, 3-A or 4-A,” he said before Reseda lost to Canoga Park. “I really believe that if we were in the 4-A, we would have to be considered one of the top three to contend for the title.”

Alemany (Southern Section 4-A): The Indians don’t have one outstanding player, but they do have a number of good ones. “I’ve got a bunch of guys who know how to play volleyball,” said Dave Carlson, the Alemany coach, who calls his players “the volleyball junkies.”

Brian Brinket, a 6-2 senior middle blocker, and Ian Rimando, a senior setter, “live, breathe and sleep volleyball,” Carlson said. “Brian Brinket is the most dominating person. If he’s on, it’s lights out for the other team.”

Brian Young, a 5-11 outside hitter, and Kevin Allen, a 5-9 junior outside hitter, are other key players. “Those guys are the nucleus, but everybody plays,” Carlson said. “There’s really nothing outstanding, they just get the job done. If one person falls, it’s not a really big loss because the others pick up. It makes my job easier.”

Alemany, like Crespi, is a second-year program in its first season in the Del Rey League. Although the Indians are not ready to challenge Loyola, the No. 1 team in the Southern Section 4-A, for league supremacy, Alemany and Crespi should fight it out for second place.

“Loyola is in a class by itself and then Crespi and Alemany are a step below,” Carlson said. “We’re going to go to the playoffs unless these guys fall apart.”

Canoga Park (City Section 3-A): The Hunters are another team without a dominating individual, relying instead on a balanced team effort.

“They have the attitude this year that they can play as good as anybody else,” Canoga Park Coach Bill Chapman said.

Canoga Park (5-0, 4-0 in the Mid Valley League) proved that when the Hunters knocked off Reseda last week. “I expected them to do well, but there are still a lot of good teams out there,” Chapman said of his veteran club.

Jeremy Mears, a 6-2 outside hitter, is Canoga Park’s top player at that position.

The Hunters also have Dennis Hackney, a setter and outside hitter, Steve Buck, a 6-4 middle blocker, Shawn Addison and Chris Byrne. Junior Sean Reyes, the only underclassman, rounds out the starters. All six played on the varsity team last year.

“It’s been a team effort,” Chapman said. “We don’t have any weak players.”