CdM's versatility, power too much for Westview

A three-set sweep was not something Corona del Mar volleyball coach Steve Conti had on his mind before his team faced off against Westview of San Diego on Tuesday in the first round of the CIF Division II Regional volleyball championships.

While no team can be thinking sweep as part of its game plan this deep into the postseason, that is exactly what Conti got as the Sea Kings beat the Wolverines, 25-22, 25-20, 25-20, at Corona del Mar.

Corona del Mar will face Santa Margarita at CdM in the next round Thursday.

Conti described how the stat sheet for Tuesday’s match looked completely different than it did for the Sea Kings in the CIF-Southern Section Division 2 final, a 3-1 victory over Laguna Beach.

Corona del Mar’s kills leader was different in each match.

“That’s kind of what has made this team special all year is we’ve got different guys who can go ahead and take swings,” Conti said.

Sea Kings junior opposite Parker Brown led the team this time around with 18 kills and had six digs. Junior middle blocker Jack Reed had 12 to go along with two blocks.

Westview opened the match with a strong, organized effort on defense and was anchored by its huge junior middle blocker Christian Ward.

With Westview making a run, it was Ward who recorded an emphatic solo block to make cut Westview's deficit to 24-22. 

But the crisp passing and strong finishing ability of Corona del Mar proved to be too much for the Wolverines to handle.

The Sea Kings know they face a big challenge in the next round, going against CIF-SS Division 1 finalist Santa Margarita.

“We’re certainly going to need to pick up our level of play and energy," Conti said. "We’re thankful that we get to host (Santa Margarita) here.

“(In CIF) we were able to pick up our level of play … and that’s exactly what we’re going to need to do in (regionals).”