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2007-2008
Antelope Valley Girl's
By CRAIG CURRIER
Valley Press Assistant Sports Editor
His Rebels didn't see it, though, until the semifinals on Tuesday.
A solid team in all facets of the game, Cypress was able to do in the semifinals what top-ranked Oaks Christian couldn't one round before - overpower Quartz Hill.
The Centurions defeated the Rebels 25-19, 21-25, 25-17, 25-21, eliminating Quartz Hill from the Southern Section Division III-AA playoffs one match short of this weekend's championship game.
"They played like we did on Saturday," Vocke said. "They were better than we thought. They're a great defensive team."
Cypress (30-2) was just that, stymying Quartz Hill's (20-2) vaunted hitters. Able to overcome any adversity in the first three rounds of the playoffs, the Rebels never did Tuesday. Cypress made them look rather ordinary, actually.
"That is a very good team," Vocke said. "Another game ... things might have been different."
Senior setter Michelle Carroll set Kara Sherrard and Chelsea Hamilton as well as she has all season long, but there was no visible soft spot in the Centurions' defense. One of their top hitters, Marissa Brand (17 kills), was equally tough along the back row, digging Sherrard time and again.
The ball was doing all the things Cypress needed it to, as well. Sparking a demoralizing 11-point run in the middle of the third game, Brand took a heavy Sherrard kill attempt off the right side of her face, but the ball deflected right to a teammate and the Centurions returned the ball, eventually winning the point.
"The balls fell our way tonight," Cypress coach Heather Dillard said. "At this point in the playoffs, every team is going to be really good."
After losing the first game, Quartz Hill regained its composure in the second, emphatically evening the match. The Rebels fell behind immediately in the third, though, and then endured that long drought which took the score from 9-6 to 20-6.
Quartz Hill was put in a situation it hasn't been in too often this season. Used to playing with a lead, the Rebels were behind from the start Tuesday. It was only the sixth time all season they were forced to play a fourth game, though they won four of those previous five matches. It was Quartz Hill's first regulation loss since dropping the third match of this season to Serrano on Sept. 14.
"They had a really good offense and we didn't know how to adapt to it," Sherrard said. "When we started to, it was too late."
Both Carroll and Vocke said the team looked shocked by the large crowd in the first game.
"We were just nervous," Carroll said. "We couldn't fight through it. It was all nerves."
Quartz Hill settled in eventually and matched Cypress' intensity in the middle of the fourth game, closing to within 21-18 before bowing out.
Sherrard, a junior, had a team-high 17 kills and Hamilton, a senior, had 13 kills and four aces, including two perfect serves during an important stretch that put Quartz Hill ahead for good in the second game. Also a senior and playing in her final match for the Rebels was Kahli Remy, who had nine kills and a number of point-saving digs.
"(Vocke) kept telling us to relax and have fun," Sherrard said. "I think we did that in the second game, but we came out really nervous in game one."
Along with Brand, Lauryn Herrick led Cypress with 17 kills. Setter Kristin Neary had 40 assists as she kept her hitters away from Quartz Hill middle blocker Khaliah Burnley.
Dillard said Herrick will be named Empire League MVP after the season ends this weekend. Brand is on the league's first team, though neither has been informed of it yet.
Winners of the Empire League this fall, Cypress is trying to become the second straight Empire team to win the Division III-AA championship. Valencia of Placentia, which finished third in the league this year and lost in the first round, defeated Warren in the title game a year ago. The volleyball finals for all divisions are played at Cypress College, which is about a block down Valley View Avenue from Cypress High.
Despite the loss, Carroll was able to reflect on her final high school season.
"It was the best team I've been on," she said. "It was a good season. I just wish we could have gone to the finals."
