The Olympian High School girls volleyball team rolled perfect threes in winning each of its first two Southern California regional playoff games. The second-seeded Lady Eagles didn’t record another sweep in Tuesday’s Southern California regional championship game at top-seeded Valley View (Moreno Valley), but did post a victory in five games that was just as rewarding — and history-making.
The Lady Eagles have fought their way to Saturday’s Division III state championship game at Santiago Canyon College in Orange.
Olympian (29-10) will face off against Northern California regional champion Valley Christian (San Jose) in Saturday’s state final. Game time is 3 p.m. The match will be live-streamed by Time Warner Cable (www.twccommunity.com).
The Lady Eagles secured a berth in the state championship game by recording a come-from-behind 3-2 win over Valley View, which entered Tuesday’s high profile match-up with an intimidating 28-2-1 record.
Olympian, riding an eight-game win streak, is the only team from the San Diego Section to qualify for Saturday’s state finals.
Top-seeded Valley Christian (29-8) topped second-seeded Sacred Heart Cathedral (30-9) in Tuesday’s Division III Nor Cal final to secure its place in the state title match opposite the Lady Eagles.
Vision quest
Olympian, this year’s San Diego Section Division II champion, began its quest for a state championship by hosting and defeating seventh-seeded Chatsworth on Tuesday, Nov. 23. The Lady Eagles won by scores of 25-13, 25-17, 25-16.
The Lady Eagles eliminated third-seeded Santa Monica 25-21, 25-16, 25-16 in the regional semifinals on Saturday, Nov. 28.
Junior Lauren Appelman led Olympian with 13 kills in the win over Chatsworth (26-17) while junior Yvette Macias had five serving aces and 18 digs. Junior Laurie Orbita contributed a team-leading 19 assists.
Sophomore Brianna Torres and senior Alex Hightower each had seven kills in the win over Chatsworth; Hightower also contributed 11 digs while junior Andrea Ramirez had 11 assists.
Appelman had 20 kills in the win over Santa Monica (17-7) while Hightower had 10 kills. Appelman also recorded four serving aces and 12 digs. Macias led the team with 17 digs, followed by Hightower on the score sheet. Orbita had 21 assists while Ramirez had 17 assists.
Lady Eagles to make history-making first state championship appearance
In Tuesday’s SoCal regional final, visiting Olympian lost the first game 25-17. then won the next two games — 26-24, 25-22 — to take a 2-1 edge in the best-of-five series. Valley View won the fourth game 25-19 to tie the teams at two wins apiece.
The Lady Eagles then won the deciding fifth game 15-7 to advance to its first state championship game.
Appelman led the Lady Eagles with 19 kills in Tuesday’s regional final while Hightower contributed 18 kills and Torres had 15 kills. Appelman also had three serving aces while Hightower contributed a team high 29 digs. Macias had 28 digs while Appelman contributed 18 digs. Ramirez and Orbita tallied 16 and 14 assists, respectively.
Appelman said she and her teammates were determined not to let their history-making season end quite yet.
Both teams in Tuesday’s regional final appeared to be playing their best at this time of the season.
Olympian took a seven-game winning streak into Tuesday’s regional final while Valley View had won nine in a row.
Valley View opened the state regional playoffs with a 3-0 win over eighth-seeded Steele Canyon, the Division III San Diego Section champion, in the quarterfinals and then defeated fifth-seeded Saddleback Valley Christian 3-2 in the semifinals.
Appelman leads the Lady Eagles with 4026 kills, followed by Hightower with 324 kills and Torres with 225 kills. Hightower leads the team with 68 serving aces, followed by Macias with 60 serving aces. Senior Taylor Roberts has 75 total blocks while Macias has racked up 600 digs. Orbita has 536 assists while Ramirez follows with 395 assists. Hightower ranks second on the team with 477 digs.
2015 CIF STATE GIRLS VOLLEYBALL CHAMPIONSHIP FINALS AT SANTIAGO CANYON COLLEGE, ORANGE
Time Warner Cable to Broadcast All Five Games Live Online
Sacramento (CIF State press release) — The top California high school teams will compete for the state title during the 2015 CIF State Girls Volleyball Championships on Saturday, Dec. 5, on the campus of Santiago Canyon College, Orange. Additionally, all five final matches will be streamed live online at www.twccommunity.com.
This year’s event features four teams with previous state championship history, while Menlo-Atherton (Division I), Olympian (Division III), Notre Dame Belmont (Division IV), Laguna Blanca (Division IV) and Upland Christian (Division V) are all making their first appearances, to make up the 10 teams in the 38th year of the state tournament.
Redondo Union returns for a second consecutive year in hopes to repeat as the Division I champions and remain undefeated. In Division II, Archbishop Mitty is vying for its fourth straight title and improve on their 11-4 championship record.
In Division III, Valley Christian (San Jose) returns for a third time and hopes to improve on its 1-1 all-time record. The Division V game features Branson (4-2 in all-time state finals appearances), which is appearing in its seventh consecutive state championship title game after losing the past two years.
General admission tickets are $12 for adults and $8 for seniors (65-older), children (5-older) and students with a valid ASB card. Visit the CIF State website (www.cifstate.org) for more information on this Championship event.
BROADCAST INFORMATION:?Time Warner Cable has exclusive broadcast rights for all five matches.
Live Video Streaming: www.twccommunity.com
CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE:
| TIME | MATCH | TEAMS | |
| 10:00 a.m. | Division V | Branson (29-9) vs. Upland Christian (27-7) | |
| 12:30 p.m. | Division IV | Notre Dame Belmont (31-10) vs. Laguna Blanca (20-8) | |
| 3:00 p.m. | Division III | Valley Christian, San Jose (30-8) vs. Olympian (29-10) | |
| 5:30 p.m. | Division II | Archbishop Mitty (34-5) vs. Village Christian (34-7) | |
| 8:00 p.m. | Division I | Menlo Atherton (27-7) vs. Redondo Union (35-4) | |
Update:
Valley Christian defeats Olympian 25-14, 25-6, 25-18 in state championship match.
Kills: Lauren Appelman (O) 7. Digs: Yvette Macias (O) 8. Assists: Tammy Nunez (7).
Note: Olympian finishes 29-11.
38th ANNUAL CIF STATE VOLLEYBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS RECAP
Archbishop Mitty claims record 12th state title
ORANGE – The Northern Region took four of five division matches during the 2015 CIF State Volleyball Championships at Santiago Canyon College. Archbishop Mitty (Division II) claimed a record 12th State title, Branson (Division V) recorded their fifth crown and Valley Christian (Division III) and Redondo Union each won their second State Championship.
Division I: Redondo Union def. Menlo-Atherton 25-16, 25-18, 25-16
Redondo Union (36-4) captured their second State crown as they swept Menlo-Atherton (27-8), who was appearing in their first State title game. Megan Rice led the Sea Hawks with 22 kills, while Norene Iosia recorded 36 assists on the night. Jacqueline DiSanto led the Bears with 14 kills in the loss.
Division II: Archbishop Mitty (San Jose) def. Village Christian (Sun Valley) 25-21, 22-25, 25-11, 25-16
The Archbishop Mitty Monarchs (35-5) claimed a State record 12th Championship as they defeated the Village Christian Crusaders (34-8), who were making their first appearance. Nicole Liddle led the Monarchs with 13 kills followed by Julia Chizankos with 10 kills, while Tessie Powers and Lauren Speckman totaled 22 and 17 assists respectively. Kyra Banko (18) and Meghan Lacey (13) combined for 31 of the Crusaders 40 kills.
Division III: Valley Christian (San Jose) def. Olympian (Chula Vista) 25-14, 25-6, 25-18
In their third State appearance Valley Christian (31-8) won their second crown as they swept Olympian (29-11). Ronika Stone led the Warriors with 18 kills, while Tori Dilfer recorded 39 asssists. Lauren Appelman totaled eight kills in the loss for the Eagles.
Division IV: Notre Dame Belmont def. Laguna Blanca (Santa Barbara) 25-14, 25-18, 25-19
Notre Dame Belmont (32-10) claimed their first ever State Championship as they defeated Laugna Blanca (20-8) who was also making their first State title appearance. The trio of Katie Smoot (20), Tammy Byrne (14) and Jessica Beering (10) combined for 44 of the Tigers 52 kills, while Kristine Gese totaled 45 assists. Phoebe Madsen led the Owls with seven kills in the loss.
Division V: Branson (Ross) def. Upland Christian Academy 25-10, 25-3, 25-7
The Branson Bulls (30-9) won their first State title since 2012 (fifth overall) as they defeated the Upland Christian Eagles, who were appearing in their first State Championship. The duo of Grace Robert Burbank (15) and Carrie Wentzel (12) combined for 27 of the Bulls 42 kills, while Gigi Alper served six aces and Maddy Schoenberger recorded 23 assists in the win. Rachel Holmes led Upland Christian with six kills on the day.
Lady Eagle spikers end season with loss at state championships
The Olympian High School girls volleyball team’s history-making season finally ended last Saturday with a 3-0 setback to San Jose Valley Christian in the Division III state championship game at Santiago Canyon College in Orange.
Olympian, the Southern California champion, fell by scores of 25-14, 25-6, 25-18 to the Northern California champions. It was the third state finals appearance for Valley Christian and its second state title.
Ronika Stone led the Lady Warriors (31-8) with 18 kills, while Tori Dilfer recorded 39 assists. Junior Lauren Appelman totaled eight kills in the loss for the Lady Eagles (29-11).
Despite the loss in the state championships, Olympian’s spikers continue to draw praise.
“It’s a great thing for our conference,” noted Joe Heinz, who serves as the Metro Conference’s athletics coordinator. “It’s a great thing for Olympian, it’s a great thing for these girls. Not many teams from the South Bay make it to the state finals.”
San Diego Section Commissioner Jerry Schniepp also complimented the Lady Eagles on their history-making journey to the state finals. Olympian was the lone section team represented there.
“It’s incredibly exciting — we’re proud of what they’ve done,” Schniepp said.
