First published in the Sept. 11 print issue of the Glendale News-Press.
John Burroughs High School’s varsity girls’ volleyball team carried brooms off the court as it swept visiting Crescenta Valley High, 3-0, on Tuesday by scores of 25-10, 25-16 and 25-22.
The victory kept the host Bears (3-0 league record, 7-4 overall) tied with Arcadia atop the Pacific League standings. The Falcons are 2-1 in league (8-8 overall).
The Bears were firing on all cylinders en route to their third consecutive shutout victory. But even if the score doesn’t accurately reflect it, CV never quit and stayed competitive throughout the match.
“We didn’t lose game three. Burroughs won game three,” said Matt Simons, CV’s head coach. “Right now, Burroughs is a little stronger team than us, and we’re happy to be able to compete like that. They showed us what we need to work on.”
The first set was lopsided, as Burroughs attacked the box to earn a 25-10 victory. Burroughs senior Bella Lomet was a perfect six for six in kill attempts in the first set.
The second set was closer, but not by much as Burroughs cruised to an easy 25-16 victory, capped off by sophomore Tawnie Ohrt’s powerful, unstoppable kill to win the second set. The set also saw back-to-back aces by Burroughs senior Charlotte Hobson to extend the Bears’ lead to 23-15.
The third set was the most exciting of the three. After an early run by Burroughs, CV answered back and took a 6-3 lead. The score remained at a deadlock until an ace by Hobson gave the Bears a 13-12 lead, one Burroughs wouldn’t relinquish for the rest of the game. CV kept the set within five points, but it wasn’t enough as the Bears clawed out a 25-22 victory.
The losing effort quickly turned into a learning experience for Simons and CVHS.
“We struggled with serve and pass, and at the end of the day, that’s basically volleyball,” Simons said. “Our effort was much better in game two and game three. I’m so proud of the way we bounced back and worked hard and didn’t give up.”
CV’s Sofia Shin had a team-high 13 digs. Seniors Sofia Morris had 10 digs, while seniors Prenie Ohanian and Bee Marnell each had nine. Seniors Alex Blank and Ayazi Zara finished with five and three digs, respectively, while junior Jana Coffeen and senior Ashley Lineses each had two.
Offensively, junior Nyra Tatoulian had four kills, Coffeen had three, and senior Mckenna Keil and junior Rory Reedy-Solano each had two. Zara also tallied one kill to her line.
CV hosted Burbank High School in the Falcons’ fourth Pacific League match on Friday, but the result was unavailable by the News-Press’ publication deadline.
