Bakersfield Christian rolls past CVC, captures first Div. IV title
| Friday, Nov 21 2008 02:04 AM
Last Updated Friday, Mar 27 2009 02:07 PM
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Bakersfield Christian's Molly Armstrong (2) erupts from the sideline as the Eagles win the second game en route to a sweep of Central Valley Christian in the section final Thursday night at BCHS. Her teammates from left are Jessie Rivera, Jessica Force (4), Brittany Smith (6) and Tori Hoffmann (22).
Elated Bakersfield Christian players Breann Goodmon (3) and Jessica Force celebrate the Eagles' section championship Thursday night. BCHS defeated Central Valley Christian 3-0.
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Justine Schoneveld vividly remembers last year's Central Section volleyball championship match, when Visalia-Central Valley Christian beat her Bakersfield Christian Eagles.
The tables turned Thursday night. BCHS used solid all-around play, better aggressiveness and superior talent to romp past CVC, 25-20, 25-12, 25-21, in the Division IV finals at BCHS.
"We were definitely out for revenge," said Schoneveld, a senior setter. "I felt this was the best we've played all year. We just meshed together."
It was the fifth straight year the Eagles and Cavaliers have met in the section playoffs, and the fourth straight year they've met in the finals. The previous three years were in Div. V. It was the third section title for the Eagles.
By winning, BCHS (25-6) will host a Southern California first-round playoff match on Tuesday against an opponent to be determined during a CIF seeding and selection meeting Saturday.
"Tonight we just jelled," said senior middle blocker Clare Flood, who had a team-high 12 kills and five blocks for the Eagles. "When we play like this, no one can stop us."
First-year BCHS coach Michal Robinson said her team was focused.
"The girls came out mentally prepared," she said. "We came out strong. They were ready."
The Eagles pulled away at the end of Game 1 and stayed in control the rest of the night.
Leading 21-20, Schoneveld's quick set for a Molly Armstrong kill made it 22-20, and CVC's Brelle De Groot then sent an attempted kill out of bounds on what was an easy set at the net. An illegal lift and the inability to return a tap closed out the set.
CVC was dominated from the start in the second set. The Eagles were at their best with solid net play and outstanding digs on the defensive end.
Seven consecutive points broke it open, giving the Eagles a 21-9 lead. The Cavaliers played so tentative that their attacks were not struck firmly, and with BCHS playing such strong defense, that created easy counters that the Eagles put away.
"Bakersfield Christian definitely got some momentum going," CVC coach Amanda Oliver said. "Volleyball is a game of momentum, and once you get down it's hard to come back again."
BCHS rode that momentum into the third game and appeared on the way to an easy sweep.
The Eagles built leads of 12-6 and 14-9 before the Cavaliers rallied to take an 18-16 lead.
Just before the rally, CVC senior middle blocker Jessica Monteiro said something to an official and was assessed a yellow card, which is a warning.
The warning came at an unusual moment, since the Cavaliers had just scored a point on a net violation against Flood. The game was stopped for several minutes as players on both sides appeared confused while the head referee conferred with the captains from both sides.
"They definitely came back strong after that with some fire," Robinson said. "There was a lot of things going on during that last game. A few calls changed our momentum. ... Our girls had to bring back our momentum. It was such a long pause."
After falling behind 18-16, the Eagles rallied to score four straight points to regain command of the match.
The end came quickly. With BCHS holding a 22-21 lead, Stacey Ameye's kill off the hands of Alex Paredes made it 23-21. Tori Hoffmann stuffed an overpass to make it 24-21 and Flood finished it by smashing a kill through two blockers at the net.
"Bakersfield Christian has always been a strong team," Oliver said. "Good defense, strong offense. We came into tonight knowing it would be a tough battle. ... We turned it around, but we weren't quite able to come back far enough."
Setters Schoneveld and Janie Atkinson had 14 sets apiece. Helping Flood at the net were Molly Armstrong, who had seven kills. Breann Goodmon had a team-high 12 digs.
