PREP VOLLEYBALL ROUNDUP : Unpredictable El Toro Beats Third-Ranked Irvine

The only predictable element of the El Toro boys’ volleyball team is its unpredictability. So it wasn’t a big surprise to see unranked El Toro beat third-ranked Irvine, 15-7, 15-11, 7-15, 16-14, in a Sea View League match Friday at El Toro.

After winning the first two games, El Toro (8-9, 5-3 in league) lapsed in Game 3 and fell behind in Game 4, 14-11. But the Chargers closed out the match scoring five consecutive points, with Sean Callahan notching two blocks and a kill in the run.

Callahan finished with nine kills and six blocks and Matt Mauney had 15 kills and two blocks for El Toro. The loss deprived Irvine (12-2, 7-1) of a chance to clinch the league title outright.

Irvine defeated El Toro in five games in the teams’ first meeting. But the Vaqueros were facing a different team Friday.

During spring break, El Toro Coach Mike Jagd said numerous players skipped practice. So he disciplined the players, removing five--all starters--from the team.

“They’re all back now,” Jagd said. “They’ve worked their way back.

“After our Easter trouble, the guys’ attitudes have changed. They’re out there running around, diving for balls, swinging hard and just having fun playing volleyball. This is a rejuvenated team.”

El Toro’s season has been a roller-coaster ride. The Chargers were ranked as high as fifth in the county but lost six of nine nonleague matches. El Toro dropped out of the top 10 after losing in three games to Corona del Mar and Newport Harbor last week.

But the Chargers rebounded Friday.

“They played well,” Irvine Coach Mark Mednick said. “They served us tough and they blocked a lot of balls, one-on-one. At the end, we got stuck in a rotation we couldn’t get out of.”

Luke Carlson had 12 kills and seven blocks for Irvine.