Fifth ranked Huntington Beach rallied to defeat Laguna 20-25, 25-18, 24-26, 25-17, 15-7 in a five set match last Tuesday, May 8, at Dugger Gym to eliminate the Breakers in the first round of the Division 1 volleyball playoffs.
For Laguna, the loss was only the fifth time they have failed to win their initial playoff match with the previous setbacks in 1995, ‘91, ‘80, and ‘76.
Laguna were never able to regroup after their key serve receiver left the fourth set due to an undisclosed illness. The rattled squad never completely adjusted allowing the Oilers (26-5) to escape with the victory.
UCLA-bound Sam Burgi closed out his Laguna career with 19 kills and two pairs of service aces that were game changers in set one and three, giving the Breakers the necessary momentum for the set wins. Sophomore Geste Bianchi had 17 kills and 10 digs and showed he will be the go-to player the next few years. Andres Reavis, another sophomore added 11 kills and three blocks, while Enzo Sadler returned to the court after a lengthy absence to pass a number of difficult hits. Ayrton Garcia, a junior setter dished out 46 assists, recorded a kill, service ace, and three block assists and will be another key for next season.
