Volleyball

Eric Boyd,¿¿¿ Crescenta Valley,¿¿¿ Senior, Middle Hitter¿¿¿ The first-team ¿¿¿All-Pacific League standout was a...

The Burbank High girls' volleyball team was hoping to ride the momentum of an opening-round win in the CIF Southern Section playoffs two days earlier when it took part in a second-round contest Thursday. But the Bulldogs faced a big task in the form of No. 2 seed Whittier Christian, which was hosting the Division II-A match. The Heralds proved too much for Burbank to handle, as the Bulldogs went down in defeat, 25-10, 25-10, 25-19, ending their season. "That team hit harder and they played faster than any team we played against this season," Burbank Coach Sarah Brown said.

Long before Dylan Walker first competed in a varsity boys’ volleyball match, Flintridge Prep Coach Sean Beattie had an inkling that better days might lie ahead. While Beattie doesn’t consider himself a prophet, he proved to be right about Walker, who would go on to become one of the more decorated players in the program’s history. “I had him in the seventh and eighth grades at Flintridge Prep and could see that he was becoming a great passer who could swing,” Beattie said.

PROVIDENCE HIGH — The Bellarmine-Jefferson High boys' volleyball team was hoping to make a positive statement with its play in the 14th annual Providence Tournament. Playing against a tough Cathedral team, the Guards were determined to make a point in a first-round match Thursday. Although Bell-Jeff likely accomplished its goal, it would have preferred to have done so with a victory. The Guards fought back from a one-game deficit and pushed the Phantoms to the brink in the deciding game, only to fall in a 25-19, 18-25, 15-13, opening-season loss in the match at Providence High.

BURBANK HIGH — The first time the Burbank High boys' volleyball team played Arcadia earlier this season, the Bulldogs came two points away from forcing a winner-take-all fifth game on the Apaches' home floor. With confidence that they could possibly turn the tide on Arcadia when the teams met Wednesday at Burbank, the Bulldogs went into the Pacific League contest with high expectations. Unfortunately for the Bulldogs, the second matchup against the Apaches ultimately yielded the same result as the first, as Burbank fell in four games, 25-14, 25-16, 22-25, 25-14.

BELLARMINE-JEFFERSON HIGH — The Bellarmine-Jefferson High girls’ basketball team isn’t the only program at the school that has the talent to make it to a CIF Southern Section championship. That point was made Tuesday when the Guards girls’ volleyball team earned a spot in the Division IVA title match. Bell-Jeff had little trouble disposing of Desert Hot Springs, as it rolled to a 25-11, 25-18, 25-23 victory at home. The championship run is historic for Bell-Jeff (23-8)

They're twin brothers, born two minutes apart. They are separate stars in two different sports, at two different positions. But beyond that, there is hardly anything separating Burroughs High athletes Lucas and Tyler Yanez. "I don't ever plan on breaking away from my brother," said Lucas, who is older. Tyler echoes his brother's sentiments: "I've never really left him. We've always done everything together. " The pair of seniors star for both the football and boys' volleyball teams at Burroughs.

? ? ? Two-time All-Area Girls? Volleyball Player of the Year. ? ?Four-time All-Area selection. ? ? Co-Most Valuable Player of Mission League. ? ?Helped Tologs advance to CIF Southern Section Division I-A championship match. ? ? Posted career-high playoff average of 35.7 assists per match. ? ?Finished career with state-record 4,263 assists. ? ? Notched 1,194 assists in 105 games this season. ? ?

Jeff Tully Tommy Boucher calls what he did during the spring of his sophomore year at Providence High a momentary lapse. After playing volleyball as a freshman, Boucher decided to compete for the Pioneer baseball team as a sophomore, taking a chance on a sport he was unsure what success it would hold. Although he did fine in baseball, he decided to go back to volleyball, a sport he truly enjoyed. That decision paid off, not only for the Pioneers the past two seasons, but it also turned out to be a lucrative decision for Boucher.

Oshin Grigorian cheered from the sidelines Saturday as his daughter tried to spike a volleyball at the gym at Pacific Park Community Center. “They are very experienced players,” Grigorian said of his daughter’s team’s opponents. But winning wasn’t the point. Grigorian’s daughter was playing as a part of the Homenetmen Glendale “Ararat” chapter’s girls’ volleyball team for the organization’s fourth annual Friendship Games, which brought out more than 500 young athletes from across the community.

TORRANCE — A season removed from enjoying a historic journey to the CIF Southern Section Division III championship match, the Burroughs High boys' volleyball team headed into this season after graduating two key All-CIF players. Perhaps lacking some of the firepower they enjoyed last year, the Indians still won a share of the Pacific League title and embarked on another deep run in the playoffs. Burroughs found itself against a familiar nemesis Tuesday in a division semifinal match.

RIO MESA — Challenged at times, pushed at others, the Burroughs High boys' volleyball team received the accustomed rude welcome any postseason visitor should expect Saturday evening. Taking the best punches of Pacific View League runner-up Rio Mesa, however, the Indians doled out a habitual answer in a 28-26, 25-19, 29-27 victory in the quarterfinals of the CIF Southern Section Division III playoffs. "We didn't play as well as we should of and had to fight harder than the guys expected," Burroughs Coach Joel Brinton said.

BURROUGHS HIGH - Joel Brinton didn't know where to begin. There was the sub-standard first game, the "swift kick in the butt," his Burroughs High boys' volleyball team needed to get going. There was the balanced and efficient second and third games that the Indians won in their CIF Southern Section Division III second-round home playoff match against Yorba Linda. There was the "timid" fourth game that saw the Indians revert back to their first-game form. Then, there was the unforgettable fifth game.

BURROUGHS HIGH — Coach Joel Brinton didn't like how his Burroughs High boys' volleyball team ended the regular season, but he sure was pleased about how the Indians started the postseason. Less than a week after losing to Claremont in the Pacific League finale and feeling like they were "outplayed," the Indians were out for redemption in their first-round match of the CIF Southern Section Division III playoffs. The Indians weren't perfect, but they were definitely good enough to defeat visiting Village Christian, needing 56 minutes to advance to the second round with a 25-20, 25-20, 25-12 win. "As much as we tried not to think about [the loss to Claremont]

PROVIDENCE HIGH — Providence High's boys' volleyball team was hoping for a better result than it had the first time around this season against Viewpoint. In the team's first meeting March 15, the Pioneers were swept, as they could manage just nine points in one of the games and 18 in each of the other two. But the second meeting Wednesday had more important implications for Providence. A win against the league-leading Patriots would give the Pioneers a share of the Liberty League championship, the program's first in 12 years.

PROVIDENCE HIGH — Providence High's boys' volleyball team has had a problem maintaining its intensity throughout the course of an entire match this season. When the Pioneers keep their intensity level high, they can compete against the top teams in the Liberty League. However, when that intensity falters, Providence often struggles against vastly inferior squads. Still in contention for a league championship, the Pioneers needed a spirited effort Tuesday against Oakwood to stay in contention.

BURROUGHS HIGH — If the Burroughs High boys' volleyball program isn't in the midst of a dynasty in the Pacific League, it is well on its way to starting one. Although the Indians were missing their most potent offensive weapon Thursday against visiting Arcadia, Burroughs was still able to roll to a relatively easy three-game league sweep, 25-18, 25-20, 25-9. The victory gives the Indians (18-3, 11-0 in league) a share of their third straight Pacific League championship. Burroughs can notch its second consecutive undefeated league campaign Tuesday when it hosts Claremont.

BURBANK — While its dominance temporarily wavered midway through Friday's Pacific League match, the Burroughs High boys' volleyball team regrouped in plenty of time to keep Crescenta Valley from getting close to an upset on the road. And although the Falcons made a strong run at getting back in the match after coming alive down the stretch in the second game, the Indians rediscovered their intensity in the third game to finish off their 25-13, 25-21, 25-17 sweep just as solidly as they began.

BURROUGHS HIGH — For the second time this season, the Burroughs High boys' volleyball team had a relatively easy time in sweeping its Pacific League counterpart, and area rival, Burbank. The outcome of their latest match Wednesday at Burroughs was to be expected, and as the match was well underway, the outcome was never in doubt. But going into the postseason and with aspirations of reaching a CIF Southern Section championship match for the second consecutive season, Indians' Coach Joel Brinton said his team isn't where it needs to be. "We're not playing at the level we want to be at," Brinton said after the 25-14, 25-11, 25-13 win over the Bulldogs, which kept the team undefeated in Pacific League play.

BURBANK HIGH — The first time the Burbank High boys' volleyball team played Arcadia earlier this season, the Bulldogs came two points away from forcing a winner-take-all fifth game on the Apaches' home floor. With confidence that they could possibly turn the tide on Arcadia when the teams met Wednesday at Burbank, the Bulldogs went into the Pacific League contest with high expectations. Unfortunately for the Bulldogs, the second matchup against the Apaches ultimately yielded the same result as the first, as Burbank fell in four games, 25-14, 25-16, 22-25, 25-14.