Volleyball

LA CAÑADA FLINTRIDGE — On May 1, the Flintridge Prep boys' volleyball team hosted and promptly swept La Salle in a nonleague match. When the two met again in the Flintridge Prep gym for Tuesday's CIF Southern Section Division V second-round match, that first match had nothing to with nor resembled in any way the teams' rematch. In fact, the outcome was the complete opposite, as the visiting Lancers swept away the Rebels' season, 25-18, 27-25, 25-22. "We should've done better and they played really well [on May 1]

Camille Coffey can't tell you she led her teams in kills, aces, blocks and digs this season. She doesn't keep track of her statistics. "I don't play for numbers, I play to win," said Coffey, a Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy senior who served as captain of the Tologs volleyball team this season. "I really don't care about my numbers as long as I've done my best to win. " Coffey was primarily a soccer player until sixth grade when her club team dissolved and her mom pushed her toward volleyball because of her height.

Short of having a root canal, one of the most painful things for Heather Hansen to endure is having to talk about herself. Taking modesty to another level, the Providence High senior two-sport standout doesn't relish in the practice of telling other people about her accomplishments. She doesn't go around bellowing out her statistics or yapping constantly about her exploits. While many athletes are content on banging their own drum so vigorously that the noise can be deafening Hansen is instead satisfied to play her own quiet concerto of success.

ShelGIRLS' VOLLEYBALL: Providence gets best of cross-town rival in three-game nonleague victory at Bell-Jeff.BELLARMINE-JEFFERSON HIGH -- Entering its nonleague match Monday against visiting Providence High, the Bellarmine-Jefferson girls' volleyball team was hoping not just to get its first victory of the year, but to claim bragging rights against its cross-town rival. However, the Guards' hopes were quickly dashed. Providence came out fighting and overpowered Bell-Jeff in three straight games, 25-14, 25-18, 25-22, for its 14th victory of the year.

Burbank boys? soccer team loses in final The Burbank High boys? soccer team enjoyed a fine run in the 30th annual La Cañada Holiday Classic. The Bulldogs advanced to the championship Tuesday against the host Spartans. Burbank played well, but lost, 3-1, in double overtime. ?La Cañada played very well as a team,? Burbank Coach Frank Chavez said. ?Every time our two best guys touched the ball they had three or four players around them.? Steven Trujillo scored Burbank?

LA CAÑADA FLINTRIDGE — It took five energy draining games and one classic match, but the greatest season in the history of La Cañada High boys' volleyball finally came to an end. With it came the end of, arguably, the greatest career in Spartan history, as senior Mike Gaudino left a lasting impression in the form of 39 kills. It came as La Cañada fell in dramatic fashion to visiting Brentwood, 26-24, 20-25, 25-23, 23-25, 15-10, at the Spartan gym in the CIF Southern Section Division IV quarterfinals.

Some might think the Providence High girls' volleyball team has had nothing to worry about the past few weeks. The Pioneers were undefeated heading into Wednesday's Liberty Leage match against visiting Buckley, and had been playing well. However, even though the Pioneers did away with Buckley, 25-15, 25-19, 25-21, at least one Providence player was concerned with the team's lethargic performance. "I think we played poorly, but we pulled it off," said junior outside hitter Heather Hansen, who led Providence with eight kills, five digs and two aces.

Things needed to be pieced together after the Flintridge Prep boys’ volleyball team lost several top-notch players to graduation last season. Forced to mix and match by assigning new roles to the returning athletes, veteran Flintridge Prep Coach Sean Beattie made a bold move by moving Gavin Thomson from middle blocker to outside hitter in an attempt to provide more offense after standout Dylan Walker moved on to college. “I saw that he had put the work in [before the season began]

GRANT GORDON o7"My plastic surgeon doesn't want me doing any activity where balls fly at my nose."f7 -- "Clueless" Is it legal for it to be this hot? Why are there so many people here for summer volleyball ... especially when it's this freaking hot? There's four matches going on at once, where should I stand, here looks good ... ohh!!! Ugghhh!!! Play it off, play it off, it's possible that everyone in here didn't just see me take a volleyball spike in the nether region.

The past three years, amid the coming and going of numerous other standout players, there has been one constant on the court for the area's winningest girls' volleyball team. With a Mission League co-championship and a CIF Southern Section Division I-A semifinal appearance in 2006, the Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy Tologs continued their run of dominance, and setter Sam Orlandini was again at the forefront. By guiding the Tologs back to the brink of a championship match, despite the graduation of key players and an imposing jump in division, the junior three-year varsity starter earned a unanimous selection as the 2006 All-Area Girls' Volleyball Player of the Year, as voted on by the writers and editors of the Glendale News-Press, Burbank Leader and La Cañada Valley Sun. Orlandini, a 2006 All-CIF Southern Section first-team selection and Mission League co-Most Valuable Player, becomes the third Tolog in a row to be named News-Press Player of the Year and the fifth in the last six years.