Esperanza Stuns Huntington Beach

Before the season, there were whispers that the Esperanza boys’ volleyball team would be one of the best in the county.

Esperanza turned that murmur into a roar Saturday at the Orange County Championships with a 15-0, 11-15, 15-10 victory over Huntington Beach at Marina High.

“We had a lot to prove because nobody was giving us any respect, and I think we earned it,” Esperanza’s Jon Alleman said.

Esperanza shocked Huntington Beach in front of a crowd of about 100 in an opening game that left Aztec Coach Kurt Kersten shaking his head in wonder.

“You beat Huntington Beach, 15-0, that’s unheard of, but I’ll take it,” he said.

Huntington Beach is ranked second in The Times Orange County preseason poll and Esperanza is ranked No. 7.

Behind 11 kills by Dave McKienzie, the Oilers struggled to their feet in the second game. They broke a 10-10 tie and scored three points in a row, which was capped with a thundering block by Greg Markham and Dennis Masuda. Huntington Beach scored another point when Alleman hit one long and gave up one more point before winning the game on a block by Brian Davis.

Huntington Beach jumped to a 6-3 lead in the third, rally-scoring game, but Dan Harrington had three kills to spark Esperanza on a 6-3 run to tie it, 9-9. With their momentum back, the Aztecs gave up one more point before winning the championship on a block by Kyle Anderson and Jason Dillard.

Harrington led the Aztecs with 14 kills and McKienzie led the Oilers with 16.

Huntington Beach played without starting outside hitter Evan Hook, who injured his abdomen in pool play early Saturday, but Huntington Beach Coach Rocky Ciarelli refused to blame the loss on that.

“He’s important to us, but hey, Esperanza won. I think they played very well,” Ciarelli said.

Esperanza proved itself throughout the tournament, defeating fifth-ranked San Clemente, 15-13, 15-6, in the quarterfinals and third-ranked Santa Margarita, 15-6, 15-5, in the semifinals.

Huntington Beach defeated eighth-ranked Newport Harbor, 15-9, 12-15, 15-10, in the quarterfinals and unranked El Toro, 15-6, 15-5, in the semifinals.