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The562’s coverage of Long Beach Poly is sponsored by Bryson Financial.
Photo courtesy of student photographer Noah Smith.
The Long Beach Poly girls volleyball team has only been getting better as the season has gone on. The Jackrabbits played well on all cylinders in their second round matchup against Torrance in the CIF-SS Division 3 playoffs, earning their second straight playoff sweep at home, 25-18, 25-12, 25-18.
The Jackrabbits will host their quarter final matchup back in the Ron Palmer Pavilion on Wednesday against St. Joseph.
“It’s just a testament to how hard they work. We know that as the rounds go on it gets harder and harder but they get excited for the challenge,” said Poly coach Gerald Aquiningoc. “They like the challenge and these girls are working hard right now, that’s all I can say.”
The Jackrabbits set the tone early with a 6-0 run to open the first set while looking to minimize the height and skill of Torrance middle blocker Kalyssa Blackshear. Poly’s Layla Moore and Kristen Dear were tasked with matching up against the Louisville commit, and Dear said that they relied on the energy of the team to help slow down their opponent.
“She’s ginormous and very long for me to try and block against her but for us it was more about the energy and being able to get good defensive plays and scramble plays,” said Dear, who finished with a tied game-high of eight kills while hitting an efficient .727. “It means a lot to me for my energy to be able to have the impact that it does for the team.”
Poly also got great energy from sophomore captain Cedra “Cika” Talaga, who noticeably lifted her team up and finished the game with three aces, three kills, and eight digs.
“Just being with this team feels like home,” said Talaga. “I have a different bond with each and every person on this team and the connection is really different with each person but I think I’m able to use that to help bring together the team and bring the energy.”
The Jackrabbits smothered Torrance on the serve with a team total of 14 aces. Talaga chipped in three of those, while Hannah Ballungay had five and Aleeya Salima had four.
“Well, if you serve and pass better than the other team you win 80% more of your matches so that’s our focus,” said Aquiningoc.
“I feel like those aces, even over kills, are even a better way to build momentum,” said Salima, who also tied for a game-high eight kills. “It forces the other team to scramble and it definitely helped us get some momentum today.”
Alongside Salima and Dear’s eight kills each, Emma Holder had seven and Larrissa Foster also chipped in four. Ballungay had 15 assists while Foster had 11. Moore also chipped in a game-high three blocks.
The Jackrabbits have now won 18 straight sets and will look for their eighth straight win and a trip to the semis while hosting St. Joseph on Wednesday.
“There’s nothing for me to tell them, it’s just them,” said Aquiningoc. “They know what’s at stake and they wanna be together so much and they want to keep playing and keep playing hard. They know that it’s win or go home.”
