Sailors fall in five in quarters

WESTLAKE VILLAGE — The Newport Harbor High boys’ volleyball team fell behind three points early in the fifth set and couldn’t recover against Westlake in a CIF Southern Section Division I quarterfinal match Saturday.

Westlake (28-4) upset the No. 4-seeded Sailors, 26-28, 25-20, 24-26, 25-19, 15-10, to advance to Tuesday’s semifinals.

It was the second straight year Newport Harbor (24-9) was eliminated in the quarterfinals in a five-set match.

“The fifth game we just got down 4-1 and we were playing catch-up the whole time,” Sailors Coach Dan Glenn said. “We were playing even after that. I thought the last two games we didn’t play poorly. But [the Warriors] just played well. I knew this would be a tough match. That’s what makes Division I so fun. That’s what makes it so exciting.”

Cody Caldwell, a senior bound for Loyola University Chicago, recorded 32 kills, 10 digs, three aces and one block. Senior Ian Sequeira had 35 assists, eight digs and three blocks. Senior Rusty Sary had 15 kills, 17 digs and four blocks, while sophomore Kevin Rakestraw had seven kills, seven blocks and one ace for the Sailors, who went undefeated in the Sunset League.

Glenn said it was difficult to think that this was the last match he was coaching “a great group of seniors.”

He said the Sailors have an outside chance to qualify for the CIF regional playoffs when pairings are announced May 22.

“It’s just a tough way to end the season,” Glenn said. “Hopefully we get some more, I don’t know. We’re not in control of that. But we had a great season.”

— From staff reports