VOLLEYBALL : Loyola Falls After Being Point Away From Victory

NEWPORT BEACH —  It took 3 hours 20 minutes for Laguna Beach to beat Loyola, 9-15, 15-8, 15-13, 12-15, 16-14, in a Southern Section Division I boys’ volleyball semifinal Wednesday at Corona del Mar.

For the second time in the playoffs, Laguna Beach was a point away from being eliminated when the Cubs took a 14-13 lead and had the serve in the final game.

However, Dan Styles and Beau Bianchi, who had 36 and 27 kills, respectively, kept the Artists alive with several key plays. After Styles held off Loyola with a pair of crucial side outs, Bianchi put a spike on the line to draw the Artists even, 14-14.

The teams traded sideouts before Bianchi teamed with Trevor Whalley on a block to give the Artists a match point. Loyola outside hitter David Olson was then whistled for sliding under the net, giving Laguna Beach the deciding point.

“I thought it was a well-played match on both sides,” Loyola Coach Darrick Lucero said, “but we made a few mistakes in the late stages of the fifth game that cost us the match. We had problems with our blocking the last few plays of the game.”

The Cubs (20-2) return five of their six starters next season. Olson, who will attend Harvard, is the only graduate.

After Loyola dominated the first game, Laguna Beach came to life in Game 2 and jumped out to a 14-4 lead on the way to evening the match.

In the third game, the Artists blew leads of 10-5 and 13-10, but eventually won the game on a Justin Maison service ace. The biggest battle was in Game 4 as the teams went through 22 consecutive sideouts before the Cubs won.