Schools
Chadwick Girls VB Wins Playoff Match
Chadwick is a winner in its first post-season playoff game. Team plays Brentwood at home on Saturday.
Fresh off their celebration for back-to-back CIF titles, the Chadwick High School girls volleyball team’s mission was to avoid any letdown in the first round of the Southern California State Regional Division III playoffs. Mission accomplished.
The Dolphins (28-1) decimated a clearly outmatched Golden Valley of Bakersfield Tuesday night at Chadwick, winning, 25-15, 25-14, and 25-16, before a raucous packed house.
“We are on a mission to try to get as far as any Chadwick team has ever been,” Captain Emily Newton of Manhattan Beach. “Last season we were just happy to to win CIF but this season we want to win the whole state. This was our first step.”
With the score tied 5-5 in the first game, Chadwick scored the next eight points behind the serves of Newton, putting the game out of reach and taking much of the air out of the sails of Golden Valley (33-13).
“It felt like we took control in the first game and they never really recovered,” Newton said. “I could tell that they were in shock from the crowd noise and we just took advantage of playing in front of our crowd.”
The "Troops," as part of the Chadwick crowd is called, is made up of students mostly from other sports who dress up in costumes and perform choreographed cheers while chanting loudly throughout the match.
“They have been doing this pretty much all season,” said setter Sarah Lucenti of Manhattan Beach. “It really helps to get us motivated and I also think that it gets into the heads of our opponents. I love it.”
The Dolphins were led by outside hitter Abbe Holtze of Manhattan Beach who had a game-high 16 kills along with two aces. Newton finished the game with 11 kills and three aces while Lucenti had seven kills and four aces.
“I thought we played well after we settled down early,” said Chadwick Head Coach Anita Drennen. “These girls are extremely focused and I think that we are playing our best volleyball of the season right now.”
The second-seeded Dolphins will be at home on Saturday when they take on third-seeded Brentwood in the regional quarterfinal. Chadwick beat Brentwood in four games earlier this season but Brentwood was without their best player in that match, according to Drennen.
