The562’s coverage of volleyball in the 2022-23 school year is sponsored by Misty-May Treanor and the Dream in Gold Foundation.
The Tae Kim Lakewood/Molten Classic had the top five Moore League teams competing, and three of them brought home hardware, as Lakewood was the Division 1 gold bracket runner-up, Millikan was the Division 2 gold bracket champion, and Cabrillo was the Division 3 bronze bracket champion.
Lakewood
The562’s coverage of Lakewood Athletics is sponsored by J.P. Crawford, Class of 2013.
Heading into the finals of the Tae Kim Lakewood/Molten Classic Saturday night, the Lakewood girls’ volleyball team faced a familiar foe going against Huntington Beach.
In their most recent match, the Oilers bested Lakewood on Thursday, but the Lancers looked primed to avenge their two early season losses as Lakewood took an early 2-0 lead against Huntington Beach.
Huntington Beach fought back as they forced a fifth set and took the tournament victory as the Oilers defeated the Lancers 17-25, 23-25, 25-21, 25-17 and 15-9.
“The good news is we saw our potential,” Lakewood coach Mike Wadley said. “The bad news is we stopped playing with our potential probably in the middle of the third set. In the fourth set they just controlled it and they just played better than us.”
Lakewood got off to a fast start in the first set as Samara DaCoud and Zaria Thornton made the most of their opportunities as the Lancers never trailed.
While senior Fatimah Hall had 31 assists and 13 digs, DaCoud had her own double-double with 14 kills and 16 digs.
In a very competitive second set, the Oilers opened with a 10-5 lead, but Lakewood continued to stay within striking distance and tied the set at 17-17.
Lakewood went on a 3-0 run to take a 21-20 for their first lead of the set before taking the set and a 2-0 lead.
The Oilers went on to take control of the match in the third set and never looked back as they won three straight sets to take the victory.
“We played (Huntington Beach) on Thursday and we looked so much better tonight,” Wadley said. “We played against a good Cypress team and I’m pleased with where we’re going. We took some really good steps forward today.”
For an early season match, Saturday’s match was a good view at what the Lancers will face as they make their way up the polls.
Lakewood will continue their tough non-league schedule when the Lancers take on Marymount and Mater Dei next week.
Click here for video coverage of Lakewood’s match.
Millikan
The Rams proved they have a lot to look forward to this season as they won the Division 2 championship after going undefeated in pool play and running perfect through the playoffs. Coach Ashleigh Atsaros said Elle Lundahl was a great leader for the Rams, with 15 kills, 10 digs, and four aces in the championship victory.
Click here for video coverage of Millikan’s championship win.
Cabrillo
The562’s coverage of Cabrillo Athletics is sponsored by the Cohn Family.
The Jaguars took a big step forward, going 2-0 on Saturday with wins over South El Monte and Artesia to claim the bronze bracket Division 3 title. The Jaguars were led by libero Chelsie Odullo.
