By Candice Tran
The Barons defeated the Panthers, 3-1 on Saturday, Apr. 29. After advancing to CIF-Southern Section Division III playoffs, the Barons previously matched up against Portola, winning all three sets just two days prior to their game against Newbury Park.
With just a few days of practice between each match, the Barons are putting up solid performances and are advancing to Quarterfinals.
“I think our defense is a lot better. Our blocking is pretty solid. We adjusted a lot faster, so I think we did a great job there,” senior co-captain Curtis Harper said.
As the referee blew the whistle, the first set began with a jump serve from the Barons. Though the first point of the game went to the Panthers, shortly after, Harper gave the Barons a side out with a kill. The Barons held an early lead from blocks and faults from the Panthers.
The Panthers started to come back in the first set with their aces and unreceivable kills. The score was tight, but the morale on both sides was high—the benches roaring for their teams to get the next point. Both teams steadily built up more points; one play for the Barons by junior Bennett Heydorn left a tipped ball on the Panthers’ side of the court defenseless, the point going to the Barons.
With the score sitting at 14-16, the Barons needed a side out. Junior Thomas Ho got a kill, which was then followed by freshman Arion Wang’s ace—a flawless float serve that a Panther was unable to set.
Throughout the match, countless rallies transpired. Both teams were kept on their toes; the Barons had many close calls but always managed to get the ball on the other side of the net—most of the points going to them.
Harper made an overpass kill, helping the Barons lead 20-19. Another two kills from Harper and a block from senior Joseph Nguyen sealed the first set in the Baron’s victory, 25-21.
A long rally started the second set and snowballed into the Barons scoring point after point. A set from senior co-captain Jovanni Dang to the back row converted a quick six-point lead for the Barons (7-1). Harper and Ho continued to stack up kills for the Barons, extending their lead 16-7. However, the Panthers did not go without a fight.
The Panthers managed to obtain points but to no avail. They were not able to overcome the point difference. To end the second set, Nguyen tipped the ball over the net and the whistle blew. In comparison with the first set, the second set was not as close, with the final score 25-17.
“I think all the players played great. Everyone [had] a standout moment for sure,” Harper said. “I got to say Thomas [Ho] when he killed that back row [hit] even though he was over. It was pretty nice.”
In the third set, Dang had an ace, while junior Colin Harper got a kill. An even greater effort was made by the Panthers, keeping the score tied for most of the set. Another rally concluded in favor of the Barons with a dig from Nguyen translating into a kill by Dang. Back-to-back rallies were won by the Barons, boosting their score 13-11.
The Barons were on a run, 16-11, but luckily for the Panthers, a service fault allowed them a side out. With each serve, along with powerful kills, the Panthers were closing the gap in the score. Finally, a kill by Colin Harper, an ace by Heydorn, and a one-handed block from Curtis Harper pushed the score to 24-23.
One more point was required for the Barons to defeat Newbury Park High School in all three sets, but after the referee made the call signifying the Barons’ victory, the Panthers contested the call. Instead, the point was awarded to the Panthers, who managed to snatch two more points, taking the third set 24-26.
Heydorn contributed to the Barons’ score in the fourth set with a kill, only to be accompanied by another shortly after. The Panthers had strong attacks too, but also had many faults. The Harper brothers shut down an attack by Newbury Park with a block. In the next play, Curtis Harper gave a back-row attack.
With each attack, the Barons were further into their momentum. They were leading 19-11 after a block by Heydorn and Dang. The fourth set was heading into its final minutes.
Ho, Curtis Harper and Dang all secured points for the Barons through kills, but only after an effortful rally ending in Dang making a kill were the Barons up 23-12. Heydorn had another kill to boost the Barons to match point and it was Curtis Harper’s cross-court shot that gave them the fourth set. The Barons won the set, 25-13.
“I thought we played really good,” Ho said. “There were a lot of ups and downs in this game but we managed to pull through.”
Winning the game 3-1, the Barons now head into their quarterfinal matchup in the CIF-SS playoffs against St. Margaret’s on Wednesday, May 3, at 6:00 p.m.
