Corona del Mar goes the distance again, falls to Foothill
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Corona del Mar might have been hoping for a broken record.
Playing a third consecutive home match in the girls’ volleyball playoffs, the Sea Kings never led, but they forced their way into another fifth set.
Their fortunes in final sets had changed since the postseason, and here again was an opportunity for that narrative to continue.
It was not to be.
Senior pin hitter Casi Doll had 21 kills and three block assists, but Corona del Mar fell to fourth-seeded Foothill 25-20, 16-25, 25-16, 21-25, 15-10 on Wednesday in a Division 3 quarterfinal match.
Max Gamboa, first-year head coach of the Sea Kings, said it hurt to see a “special thing come to an end.”
“I think nobody really believed in CdM this year, except for the players, the parents, the coaches and the supporters that we have,” Gamboa said. “I think we proved tonight that we can play with just about anybody, and we play hard, and that’s why people come and support.
“They come and support because this team is special, and they appreciate each other, and they love one another and they work for each other. You don’t get that with all your groups. … On the varsity group, everybody was engaged, everybody was fired up and everybody was appreciative of each other.”
Corona del Mar (17-14) drew even for the second time in the contest on a service ace by junior libero Makenna Smith, one of three for the impactful reserve.
Foothill (26-10) went deeper into the bench during the course of the match, but when push came to shove, the Knights leaned on sophomore outside hitter June Stringham and senior opposite Haley Langdon. The duo combined for seven kills in the fifth set.
“June and Haley are definitely our kill leaders,” Foothill coach Aaron Wolfe said. “They have been all year, and Haley — even with three rotations — she’s one of our kill leaders. June is doing great, mature beyond her sophomore years, taking big swings. The team follows her, even though she’s not a captain. She’s a great leader on the court with a good, cool mentality.”
Stringham had team-leading totals of 17 kills and seven aces for Foothill. Langdon added 14 kills and three block assists. Junior outside hitter Marisa Hilde produced eight kills and two block assists, sophomore outside hitter Alana Jackson had seven kills and junior middle blocker Mallory Grimes chipped in with five kills and two block assists.
Senior setter Sophia Reynolds contributed 20 assists, 13 digs and four aces, while freshman setter Claire Bartos dished out 21 assists to go with three aces. Senior middle blocker Peyton Harrison totaled three blocks, and senior libero Megan Bach provided nine digs.
“It definitely means so much to know that each girl with us is going to put in 100% effort,” said Stringham, who had team-leading totals of 17 kills and seven aces. “I think that also contributes to our success when everyone’s pushing their fullest, giving their absolute best.”
Corona del Mar’s first five-set win of the season came against Pasadena Mayfield in the opening round of the playoffs. It notched another against Burbank Burroughs on Saturday.
“It was super special,” said Doll, a Tarbut V’Torah transfer committed to UC Riverside. “Having three home games in a row for CIF is, like, unheard of. Last year, we didn’t make CIF, so it was really special this year. I wouldn’t have rather done it with any other group of girls.”
Junior outside hitter Sofia Dajnowiec recorded 18 kills and two aces. Junior opposite Savannah Dennis contributed 10 kills and four aces off the bench. Senior middle blocker Izzie Ashcraft had four block assists, senior middle blocker Matisse Robertson had four kills and an ace, while senior libero Riley Card added two aces.
Junior setter Myrto Charalabidi distributed a team-high 30 assists for CdM, which was the fourth-place qualifier from the Sunset League. Junior setter Livi Rosowski handed out 21 assists.
