Relativity at Campbell Hall

If Cicely and Lena Carew had an ace or a kill for every time someone asked The Question, they’d have shattered Southern Section records long ago.

Yes, they are related to Rod Carew, a member of baseball’s Hall of Fame.

No, the Campbell Hall High volleyball sisters don’t see Rod that often, but their father, Topper, is a cousin of his.

“Everybody asks me and I say, ‘Well, yeah,’ ” Cicely said. “I don’t really think about it because I hear it so often.”

Cicely, an opposite hitter, seems more comfortable talking about volleyball, specifically how Campbell Hall, a team with only eight players, can be ranked No. 2 in Division V-AA.

The lack of depth “pushes us more than if we were a 12-person team,” Cicely said. “Everyone’s really good individually so it’s not that hard.”

Lena, who has missed the last three matches because of a sprained right ankle, is expected to return tonight against league rival Brentwood, where her back-row defense, a surprising trait for a middle blocker, will be needed.

“If there’s a monster player on the other side of the net, [Lena] will dig her [attempts],” Coach Lynn Rangel of Campbell Hall said. “She’s my best back-row player.”

The Carews aren’t the only players for the Vikings (9-6, 3-3 in the Delphic League) with famous relatives.

Alex Yeaggy, a role player, is the daughter of Melody Scott Thomas, who plays Nikki Newman on the daytime soap “The Young & the Restless.”

Yeaggy said she grew up like anybody else.

“It’s really no different than any other family,” she said. “I’ve lived with it all my life, so I don’t know any other way.”

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Royal will retire the jersey number worn by Michelle Pagan, who was killed by a drunk driver in an automobile accident last Christmas.

Pagan, a setter on the 1989 Southern Section championship team at Royal, was killed when her car was struck by a driver who was later convicted of vehicular manslaughter.

“I think one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do in my life was go to her funeral,” said Coach Bob Ferguson of Royal. “She was a happy kid, liked by everybody.”

Royal will retire Pagan’s jersey No. 1 before its alumni match Tuesday.

Toni-Ann Merendino, an outside hitter for the Highlanders, will continue to wear No. 1 this season.

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Oxnard has changed is league and is about to change its volleyball history.

The Yellowjackets (10-2, 10-0 in Pacific League play) will qualify for the playoffs for the first time.

Success has been prevalent at all levels for Oxnard, which moved from the Channel League before the school year began.

The freshmen, junior varsity and varsity have a combined record of 33-2.

“It’s been an outstanding season all the way around,” Coach Lori Rice said.

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The Top 10

Rankings of girls’ volleyball teams from the region

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RK LW School (League) 1 1 Harvard-Westlake (Mission) 2 2 Royal (Marmonte) 3 3 Calabasas (Frontier) 4 6 Westlake (Marmonte) 5 4 La Reina (Tri-Valley) 6 7 Buena (Channel) 7 8 Village Christian (Alpha) 8 9 Notre Dame (Mission) 9 5 Flintridge SH (Mission) 10 10 Poly (Valley Pac-8)

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