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Cerritos High seniors, from left to right, Sophia Toney, Brooke Lozano, Ariel Cawili, Gaby Colombo, Xitlally Gonzalez, Jadalynn Pasana-Hildalgo, Kelly Ogasawara and Casey Chuanico played their last regular season home match this past Tuesday against Whitney High. Despite a match0high 19 kills from Lozano, it was Whitney which spoiled the party in a 16-25, 25-19, 25-17, 22-25, 15-12 victory. PHOTO BY LOREN KOPFF.
October 3, 2024
By Loren Kopff • @LorenKopff on X
There is a changing of the guard in the 605 League for girls volleyball and Whitney High is on the brink of the program’s first league title since 2000. The Wildcats survived a scare from five-time defending league champion Cerritos High and rallied for a 16-25, 25-19, 25-17, 22-25, 15-12 victory this past Tuesday.
Whitney improved to 18-7 overall, 6-0 in league and swept the Dons, which entered this season with 50 straight 605 League victories since the inception of the league. Cerritos dropped to 14-11, 4-2, thus giving Whitney a league-clinching date as early as Friday when it visits last place Pioneer High.
Cerritos was primed to even the season series with its crosstown rivals, leading 5-0, 8-3 and 9-5 in the fifth set. But Whitney sophomore opposite hitter Sophia Fu had a pair of aces after kills from senior outside hitter Rachel Moyher and junior middle blocker Olachi Anyama respectively to tie the set at 9-9. Later with the score 12-12 and beginning the second rotation, Moyher placed her 13th and final kill in the left corner, followed by an ace from sophomore setter Janelle Sales and a kill from senior middle blocker Chiugo Aayama.
The fifth set was made possible because the Dons had bounced back from losing sets two and three and outscored the Wildcats 10-7 in the second rotation of the fourth set.
“It’s tough; I don’t want to walk out of here with moral victories,” said Cerritos head coach David Cuthbert. “I’m proud of my kids; they fought really hard tonight. The effort was there the whole time. With a young group, sometimes the execution wasn’t always there, but they fought really hard. It would have been easy to just roll over because we struggled in one of those early sets.”
Cuthbert was talking about the third set when Whitney held a commanding 15-5 lead at the end of the first rotation. The Dons would score four straight points, then three consecutive points moments later to make it 20-13 after an ace from senior libero Gaby Colombo.
There were six ties and four lead changes in the first, the last coming on the first of back to back aces from Cerritos sophomore opposite hitter Ceana Merino, making it 8-7. The hosts, on senior night, would put the set away when Colombo reeled off four straight points to make it 21-13.
They were looking to go up two sets to none when they leads of 10-5 and 15-9. But Moyher’s kill gave Whitney an 18-17 lead and sophomore outside hitter Emma Prowse proceeded to serve three more points. After getting just two aces in the first set, the Wildcats had a better performance in the next set, with seven in the second set, four coming in the second rotation which began with Cerritos up 16-14.
With the pressure now on the Dons, they had a fast start to the fourth set, coming back from a 4-0 deficit to take a 12-8 lead. Even though Whitney tied things up twice, the Dons were able to take a 22-17 lead on the strength of two kills each from senior outside hitter Brooke Lozano and senior middle blocker Sophia Toney, plus a combined block by the two.
“That’s our first fifth set [of the season] for this group, so it’s a new experience,” said Cuthbert. “Fifth sets are hard; you have to play your best and you have to win the points that matter in the end.”
Prowse led Whitney with 15 kills while Olachi and Chiugo Anyama added eight and six kills respectively. In the serving department, Fu and freshman libero Kelsie Kato each had five aces while Sales and senior outside hitter Janice Li added three aces a piece.
The Dons were led by Lozano (19 kills, freshman setter Ally Veron (14 kills), sophomore outside hitter Avery Updike (10 kills), Toney (eight kills), and Merino (seven kills, five aces). And while the Dons said farewell to eight seniors, who played their last regular season match at home, the future looks bright for the program with the play of their combined eight freshmen and sophomores.
“In the setting department, we have two [young] setters as well,” said Cuthbert. “We’re going to look to them a lot in the future. I’m excited for what’s going to come. But we have to make sure we learned the lessons from this year. This year is a really, really important year in our program’s history because we have to learn those lessons and be ready to step forward for big games in the future.”
Whitney hosts John Glenn High on Tuesday while Cerritos still has the inside track to finish the regular season in second place and can assures itself of that with wins against Oxford Academy on Friday and Artesia High on Tuesday, both of whom are currently tied for third place, a game behind Cerritos.
“I care little for streaks,” said Cuthbert. “The [league champion] banner up on our wall is not going to tell us anything about streaks. Every year, it’s a different group of kids. So, nobody owns that streak. It’s of non-importance to us. We’re about settling into our season and trying to win there rather than worrying about history.”
In other girls volleyball action, Artesia has won two straight, including a 23-25, 25-23, 25-23, 25-21 win over Oxford Academy this past Tuesday. The Pioneers (6-7, 3-3) will visit Glenn on Friday.
Any chance of Gahr High getting back in the postseason race began on Oct. 3 when the Gladiators hosted La Mirada High. Gahr began the week at 15-16 overall and winless in four Gateway League matches. The team will also host league-leading Downey High on Tuesday before going to second place Warren High on Thursday.
Glenn swept Pioneer 25-20, 25-16, 25-20 this past Tuesday to improve to 11-7, 2-4 as the Eagles hosted Western High on Oct. 3 while Norwalk High defeated La Mirada 18-25, 25-22, 21-15, 25-21 this past Tuesday in a pivotal Gateway League tilt. La Mirada, which will also visit Downey on Thursday, fell to 9-11, 1-4 while Norwalk (12-12, 3-2) hosted Downey on Oct. 3 and will welcome Warren on Tuesday.
Valley Christian High swept Whittier Christian High 25-8, 25-16, 25-18 this past Tuesday to improve to 18-4, 4-1 to stay close to Village Christian High for the top spot in the Olympic League. Those to faced each other on Oct. 3, then the Defenders will visit Pacifica Christian High of Orange County on Tuesday before hosting Heritage Christian High on Thursday.
FOOTBALL
Channel Islands High (1-4) @ Artesia (5-1)-The Pioneers will try to rebound from their first loss of the season when they host a struggling Channel Islands team. Artesia fell to Estancia High 30-21 las Friday and did not score in the second half for the first time this season. Senior quarterback Charlie Lopez continues to be the leader, passing for 398 yards and four touchdowns, though three interceptions, while rushing for 620 yards on 73 carries with 10 touchdowns. Senior running back Julius Padilla has 172 yards on 19 carries and senior wide receiver Ahkil Sampson has 11 receptions for 194 yards. Those three players and the rest of the Artesia offense should feast on a porous Channel Islands defense that lost to Bolsa Grande High 38-0 last Friday.
The Raiders, who are on a four-game winning streak, have scored 35 points this season, but only a safety on the last three games. They have had seven straight losing seasons and are coached by Jeremiah Valoaga, who played at Channel Islands and was in the NFL from 2017-2021, then the United States Football League.
Prediction: Artesia 49, Channel Islands 7
Lynwood High (4-1) @ Gahr (2-3)-The season began with two straight losses, then consecutive wins before a 43-26 loss to Los Altos High on Sept. 20. Now, Gahr begins Mid-Cities League action against Lynwood, a former San Gabriel Valley League rival. Gahr’s defense has not been the best, giving up at least 35 points in four of the five games. Senior Markell Slaughter is trying to spark the inconsistent offense, rushing for 442 yards and scoring eight touchdowns on the ground, catching 149 yards on 10 receptions and combining with junior Roman Acosta in the passing department for 677 yards on 49 completions.
Even though Gahr has owned Lynwood for years, this might be the toughest meeting as the Knights are the defending CIF-Southern Section Division 14 finalists. This is not the same Lynwood program that had six losing seasons from 2015-2021 and has currently lost eight straight games to Gahr, including last season’s38-0 affair. All four wins this season have been shutouts, including a 28-0 win last Friday against Manual Arts High. The lose loss came to South Gate High on Aug. 29, a 24-0 decision. Quarterback Jordan Sewell has completed 30 passes for 669 yards and nine touchdowns while running back Ernest Delce has gained 543 yards on 37 carries with nine touchdowns.
Prediction: Lynwood 35, Gahr 14
Grace High (3-2) @ Glenn (1-4)-The struggles continue for Glenn, which lost to Irvine-based University High 38-0 last Friday, the second time the Eagles have been blanked. In fact, Glenn has scored just five touchdowns this season, and a safety. This is the third of five straight home games and is Glenn’s homecoming game.
Grace lost to Oak Park High 52-26 on Sept. 20 and has lost two of its last three games. The Lancers, who hail from Simi Valley, are led by Ethan Lasecla, who has passed for 1,097 yards and 10 touchdowns while rushing for 844 yards and 14 more scored to account for all but three of the team’s touchdowns. His favorite target is Alex Van, who has caught 16 passes for 485 yards and five touchdowns.
Prediction: Grace 42, Glenn 7
Downey (4-1) @ La Mirada (1-4)-After a week off following a daunting non-league schedule in which La Mirada allowed at least 38 points in its four losses, the Matadores get set for an equally daunting Gateway League slate. Last time out, La Mirada fell to La Habra High 48-21 on Sept. 19. Junior quarterback Santino Garcia has passed for nearly 900 yards and three touchdowns but has thrown seven interceptions. La Mirada features four running backs with at least 144 yards while junior Jordan Lauago leads the receiving department with 379 yards and seven touchdowns.
Downey’s lone loss was to Red Mountain High out of Mesa, AZ, a 35-32 defeat on Sept. 20 and the Vikings are led by quarterback Oscar Rios, who has passed for 1,543 yards and 12 touchdowns and rushed for 448 yards with seven more touchdowns. Running back Bernardo Blanco has gained 442 yards on 71 carries with eight touchdowns and Rios’ favorite target is Damani Porras, who has 31 receptions for 598 yards and nine touchdowns.
Prediction: Downey 38, La Mirada 14
Norwalk (4-1) @ Compton Early College (0-5)-This game will be played at Compton Community College. As expected, Norwalk roughed up Locke High 51-8 last Friday as senior running back Ezra Meuller rushed for 218 yards on a dozen carried and scored a pair of touchdowns. Junior running backs Diego Cerritos and Derek Sandoval combined to rush for 226 yards and three touchdowns as Norwalk’s rushing attack has gained 2,137 yards and scored 25 touchdowns. This too will be a Mid-Cities League opener and the Lancers, who have scored 225 points, will be facing a first-year school.
The Rising Phoenix lost to La Quinta High 48-14 last Friday and have been outscored 297-65 this season, including consecutive games of allowing at least 70 points. The school’s first ever football game was a 47-38 setback to Centennial High. Compton Early College was established in 2015.
Prediction: Norwalk 56, Compton Early College 7
GAME OF THE WEEK
Capistrano Valley Christian High (3-2) @ Valley Christian (5-0)-Another team which had its bye last week was Valley Christian as Ironwood League action begins on Friday. The Defenders eased past Sierra Vista High 36-14 on Sept. 20 and have scored at least 28 points in four of the five games.
All Austin Abrahams has done this season is score touchdowns. The senior quarterback has thrown for 1,030 yards and nine touchdowns while rushing for 233 yards and 10 more touchdowns. Junior Dylan Teays is the recipient of 12 receptions for 354 yards and seven touchdowns and the V.C. defense has posted 14 sacks.
The Eagles are also coming off a bye and before that, lost to St. Margaret’s High 28-21. Their other loss was on Sept. 6 to Banning High, 40-10. However, in the three victories, Capo Valley Christian has scored 34 points twice and 38 in the other. Running back Joshua Monroe has gained 631 yards and found the end zone eight times while quarterback Nate Richie has completed 62 passes for 610 yards and six touchdowns with no interceptions.
Three players on defense have combined for 13 sacks, led by Duffy Kessler’s six and the Eagles have picked off opposing quarterbacks eight times.
Prediction: Valley Christian 31, Capistrano Valley Christian 21
Last week’s predictions: 3-1
Season to date: 24-10
