Newport Harbor boys’ volleyball stuns rival CdM with backdoor sweep
A match filled with tension was once again air-tight — a once comfortable lead for the Newport Harbor High boys’ volleyball team evaporating quickly under steady serving and a ferocious block from their crosstown rival.
Then with one final swing, Lukas Johnson’s aim was true, sending Newport Harbor to a 22-25, 25-27, 25-22, 25-18, 15-13 win at Corona del Mar, clinching at least a share of the Surf League title with the improbable comeback.
Newport Harbor had seen five match points erased prior to Johnson’s decisive strike.
Only 10 days removed from a four-set defeat to top-ranked Los Angeles Loyola (16-1), the defending CIF Southern Section Division 1-champion Sailors still believe they can be the team to beat.
“I think so,” said Johnson, a senior middle blocker. “Top two teams, so it’s going to be a battle, but we have the abilities to beat them.”
Newport Harbor (24-2, 4-0), the second-ranked team in the Division 1 and 2 combined poll, capped a league sweep of CdM (14-6, 2-3). The Sea Kings had moved up to No. 3 in the rankings following a five-set victory over now No. 4 Huntington Beach (21-5, 3-2) on Saturday, providing the Sailors’ league-clinching scenario.
“It’s such a momentum sport, so if you can grab some of that momentum, even if you don’t come through and make that comeback and win the set, you kind of felt the momentum of the gym start to shift a little bit [after the second set],” Newport Harbor coach Andrew Mabry said. “Really from that point forward, I felt like we were playing in front most of the match the rest of the way.
“We haven’t been in that position yet this year where we’re down 0-2 in a match, so to force that fourth set, and then force the fifth, and then to come through and win it, it’s a pretty special thing.”
Critical to the comeback was opposite Riggs Guy, who authored the kills for the first point and the last point of the fourth set. After his service ace lifted the Sailors to a 7-2 lead in the fifth set, the Newport Harbor student section took to using his first name as a chant.
“I love it,” Guy said of the crowd engagement. “I think it boosts my adrenaline. I think I play better with it.”
A couple hours after their monumental comeback began, the Sailors sat down to a reward to match — the highly-sought-after catered meal from John Ursini and Newport Rib Co. It has become a traditional feast for the winner of the crosstown rivalry.
Luca Curci, a UCLA-bound outside hitter who blasted a match-best 32 kills, was pulled aside at the feast.
“We were not going to lose, especially the seniors,” said Curci, who also had compliments for the chef. “That could be our last Battle of the Bay.”
Setter Korbin Francisco amassed 62 assists for Newport Harbor. Outside hitter Jake Read, a Loyola-Chicago commit, added 17 kills. Middle blocker Jack Berry contributed three kills and 3½ blocks.
A couple large momentum swings occurred. In the second set, Newport Harbor trailed 21-14. A tip for a kill by Read staved off the third set point of the second game, but the Sea Kings fended off the rally for a two-set lead.
In the fifth set, CdM came within a point of sending the last set past regulation, using two kills by George Bruening and a block by Sterling Foley to fight off several match points. Ryan Gant executed several short serves to keep the match alive in that stretch.
“We came out ready to play those first two sets,” CdM coach Katey Thompson said. “Newport’s a good team. They’ve been in high-pressure situations many times. They know how to bounce back. They know how to fight through it. They did a really good job of doing that. We had our opportunities in various sets, just didn’t capitalize on some of those.”
Bruening, a UC Santa Barbara commit, finished with a team-high 21 kills to go with 4½ blocks and three aces for CdM. Foley, who missed the first meeting between the rivals while playing for the U19 junior national team, added 14 kills and seven total blocks.
Gant supplied 41 assists and four kills. Reid McMullen had seven kills. Cade Alacano had five blocks, and Kaden Kavanaugh also had two blocks.
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