Cool Katz Propels Harvard-Westlake

The gaggle of well-wishers, including his girlfriend, had to wait.

Jon Katz, the underappreciated star of Harvard-Westlake High, finally spent a few minutes with the media after a strong performance against Highland.

Never flashy and sometimes forgotten, Katz almost always is near the top of the statistical chart for the Wolverines, who beat Highland, 12-15, 15-11, 15-3, 15-11, in a second-round Southern Section Division I playoff match Tuesday night at Harvard-Westlake.

Two of his teammates, 6-foot-9 Bill Strickland and 6-6 Will Curtis, have signed with Stanford, leaving the 6-2 Katz out of most opponents’ scouting reports.

No biggie.

“I’m used to being in the background,” said Katz, who actually is a vital part of the Wolverines’ playoff drive, a fact acknowledged by Coach Jess Quiroz of Harvard-Westlake.

“The other two [Strickland and Curtis] have been consistent and done their job,” Quiroz said. “If Katz’s head is in the game and all three of them are clicking, we’re going to be fine. The guy is a gamer.”

Highland (14-5) was focused at first, apparently psyched up from watching tape of last week’s NCAA championship, in which middle blockers Ryan Millar and Mac Wilson, former Bulldogs, helped Brigham Young win the title.

The Bulldogs had eight blocks in the first game and stunned the Wolverines.

“We knew we were up against a bigger, more physical team today,” Coach Mike Bird of Highland said. “But we did a great job blocking.”

Harvard-Westlake (15-3), which plays [Corona del Mar] in a quarterfinal Friday at a site to be determined, rebounded.

Katz and Strickland, who also had 20 kills, began to dominate, as did reserve opposite hitter Alex Clark, who had four kills in the second game.

The Wolverines began dropping in short serves, taking Highland out of its offense.

And, ultimately, helping Katz create a little offense for himself.

“They draw all the attention,” Katz said of his twin-tower teammates. “I just assume that we’re all going to have to go out and get a lot of kills.”