NorCal boys volleyball championships: Valley Christian, Leigh, Bellarmine capture regional titles
NorCal boys volleyball championships: Three Central Coast Section teams capture NorCal titles
Division I
Valley Christian 3, Archbishop Mitty 0
Valley Christian swept West Catholic Athletic League rival Archbishop Mitty to capture the crown in NorCal’s top boys volleyball division, winning 25-19, 25-23, 25-20.
Warriors sophomore Elan Taylor was the star of the Division I championship with a team-high 12 kills and ended the match with an ace in the third set.
Tyler Alden had nine kills, and Greg Li and Andrew Salisbury were also forces close to the net. Setting those players up were Harry Xi, setter Andy Xu and standout senior Keaton Hendry.
It was the Warriors’ first boys NorCal volleyball title in any division.
“There was a sense of urgency for every point because we knew that Mitty would not take any rests,” Valley coach Moni Tautu told the Bay Area News Group via email. “There were nerves but we expected that too. The greatest rewards require great personal risk. All season we’d cultivated a mindset of leaning on each other and pushing each other’s limits.”
Valley Christian’s run to the top was something of a surprise, as the Warriors were seeded third in the Central Coast Section Open Division.
The Warriors upset No. 2 St. Francis 3-0 behind a combined 38 assists by Hendry and Xu, and then took down No. 1 Santa Cruz 3-1 for the section title when Xu had 47 assists and Jerod White tied for the team lead with three blocks.
Seeded No. 3 again in NorCal, the Warriors swept No. 6 Bishop O’Dowd thanks to Alden’s 14 kills. The San Jose private school then had to make the long trip to Fresno to play at Sanger, where Valley handled business in a 3-1 victory.
“We are like every other team out there, we had to overcome our differences, we had to learn how to communicate and respect each other,” Tautu said. “We failed and succeeded in many ways, many times. But we had more grit and determination as we preserved through injuries and personal challenges towards the NorCal game.”
With Valley Christian’s NorCal championship in hand, the Warriors concluded the season 34-10 and on an 11-match winning streak.
Mitty finished the season 30-10, with William Dryden leading the team with 422 kills.
Division III
Leigh 3, Monta Vista 2
Leigh coach Jeff Argabright sent out three special players to receive the NorCal Division III trophy after the Longhorns defeated Monta Vista 17-25, 36-34, 21-25, 25-19, 15-8.
“We took over the program three years ago and went 3-13 (0-10 in BVAL) with freshman Cooper Smith and sophomores Liam Popejoy and Connor Chiu starting on that team,” Argabright told the Bay Area News Group in an email. “Now those three kids are CCS champions and NorCal champions.”
The game, originally scheduled for Saturday evening, was moved to 2 p.m. to allow Monta Vista to attend prom. After losing the first game, Argabright moved Popejoy to the middle and put in Owen Soloman at outside hitter, which helped the Longhorns win the second marathon set 36-34.
Xace Leem had 18 kills and Smith had 22 kills in the San Jose public school’s first NorCal title match victory. Leigh lost the NorCal Division II title game back in 2016.
“It’s been an amazing turn around. Liam is committed to play at UCSC next year. Our team motto when things are going well is ‘BBQ Chicken Alert,’” Argabright said. “I give away custom bbq chicken alert stickers to the player of the week.”
Monta Vista ended the year 21-14 after standout seasons by players such as libero Rahul Pothineni and outside hitter Elijah Kang.
The Matadors defeated Aragon to capture the CCS Division II title, and then took down International-San Francisco and Moreau Catholic to reach the program’s third NorCal title game.
Leigh finished the season 29-7, capturing the CCS Division I title with a 3-2 victory over Bellarmine before beating Lowell-SF and Del Oro to reach the NorCal title game.
“It’s been an amazing season and I’m so proud of these guys,” Argabright said. “They worked for this and had to earn every bit of it.”
Division IV
No. 1 Bellarmine 3, No. 2 Vanden 1
The Bells completed their dominant playoff run to a state title by defeating two-seeded Vanden 23-25, 25-20, 26-24, 25-13. The San Jose school won its second state title in school history and its first since 2016.
“From the opening serve to the final point, every single player on this roster gave everything they had,” said Bellarmine coach BJ Prudencio. “They faced challenges all season long, and each one of them stepped up to the plate. It’s been an honor to coach them and see them grow into a cohesive unit.”
Junior setter Jake Berenguer totaled 40 assists, three kills and three digs. Sophomore opposite hitter Krithik Sambathkumar had a team-high 14 kills to go along with eight digs and three blocks.
Outside hitter Christian Ting had 13 kills and junior setter Tavas Spencer had 36 assists and two aces for Vanden.
“I’m proud of this squad,” said Vanden coach Dalston Spencer. “Nearly all of them started with me two years ago and what they’ve accomplished is amazing. To play out of Fairfield, where boys volleyball isn’t as prominent as Sacramento or San Jose, and be able to compete with some of the best teams in Northern California, shows the work and effort they’ve put into this sport.”
Bellarmine struggled in the regular season, but performed well in the section and state playoffs. After losing to Leigh in the Central Coast Section Division I finals, the Bells made quick work of their opponents in the state tournament.
Bellarmine beat Oakland (3-1) and Lincoln-San Francisco (3-1) before winning the state title against Vanden on Saturday.
“Looking ahead, I’m excited to build on this momentum and get back to being a force in the sport,” Prudencio said. “We’ve got a talented group of young players who are hungry to learn and grow, and I’m confident we’ll continue to make a positive impact.”