Campbell Hall Plants a Seed With Rousing Victory Over Crespi

Campbell Hall High’s best player was home in bed, but the Vikings were wide awake.

Defying all odds, Campbell Hall cooled off what had been a torrid Crespi team, 15-12, 14-16, 15-11, 16-14, in a fiery nonleague boys’ volleyball match Tuesday night at Campbell Hall.

Jon Drexler delivered 19 kills, including 12 in the final two games, for the Vikings, who played without UCLA-bound middle blocker Larry Cole.

Cole was home recovering from a bout with viral myo-pericarditis, a temporary infection that attacks the sac surrounding the heart.

The victory practically guarantees Campbell Hall (13-1) a higher seeding than the Celts (13-2) in Division III of the Southern Section playoffs, which begin next Friday.

The Celts entered the match ranked No. 3, two spots ahead of Campbell Hall, but the teams likely will switch spots in the next Division III poll.

With a top-four seeding, Campbell Hall would host a potential quarterfinal match against the Celts in the playoffs, which are geographically weighted until the semifinal round.

“A big, giant win,” Campbell Hall Coach Tim Jensen said. “When you beat a good team like Crespi, you’re going to get a higher seed. We deserve to host somebody in the quarterfinals.”

Cole, who spent three nights at Cedars-Sinai Hospital before being released Tuesday, did not attend the match, but, thanks to modern technology, was given a play-by-play of the final minutes over cell phone by his stepfather, Bruce Silverman.

Cole, who is expected back on Monday, would have been proud of his teammates, who never gave in to a Crespi team that had compiled several significant victories in the past few weeks.

Drexler had seven kills in game three, where Campbell Hall rebounded from a 6-1 deficit with a 13-1 run.

“We all came together, just like Larry would have wanted,” said Jeff Erb, who had 15 kills in the match. “We wanted to win more for pride than anything.”

Meanwhile, Crespi has other things to worry about, mainly the Mission League finale Friday against Harvard-Westlake. If the Celts win, they wrap up the league title. Lose, and they likely share it with Loyola.

The Celts had injury problems of their own, with middle blocker Jonathan Bird out because of a knee injury suffered last week against Chaminade. Bird, who underwent three-hour surgery Monday to repair damaged cartilage in his right knee, is done for the season.

James Spratt had 15 kills and Taylor Steadman added 14 for Crespi, which never came close to capturing the level of intensity present in victories over Harvard-Westlake and Loyola.

“I told the kids that it scares me that Cole’s not playing because there’s no pressure on [Campbell Hall],” Crespi Coach Alvin Lamarre said. “This hurts us for seeding.”

Pairings for the playoffs will be announced Monday.