CdM seeking revenge

CORONA DEL MAR — Darryl Gan has battled the flu since Monday.

Yet, the first-year coach was the first person to rise from his seat when someone noticed tape coming undone on the Corona del Mar High volleyball court Saturday night.

The tape covered up an uneven spot on the side of La Reina of Thousands Oaks in Game 1. Gan concealed it, laying out strips of white tape and evening it out with his foot.

Things were still not even on the court.

The Sea Kings swept the Regents in the second round of the CIF State Division II tournament, 25-22, 25-18, 25-22, advancing to the Southern California Regional final.

The Sea Kings (23-8) earned another shot at Redlands East Valley (26-1), which beat CdM in the CIF Southern Section Division II-AA final Nov. 22.

“We’re excited to ... have a second chance,” said Gan, sounding and looking healthier than he did at the start of the week. “Our section final wasn’t ... probably our best match.”

It is understandable why Gan became ill two days after Redlands East Valley swept CdM.

Gan and the Sea Kings have looked a lot different since the setback.

Whether CdM heads into Tuesday’s match at Redlands East Valley with a legit shot of winning and qualifying for a chance to claim its fifth state title is debatable.

Jumping out to early leads in the first two games allowed the Sea Kings to relax against La Reina (18-3), the CIF Southern Section Division II-A runner-up. Maybe CdM got too comfortable against a school with an enrollment around 400 students.

Twice the Sea Kings had to answer to big runs in the first two games.

La Reina was on the verge of tying Game 1. Then junior outside hitter Sydney Brombal hammered a shot no one could possibly dig, giving the Sea Kings a 23-21 lead. Back-to-back kills by middle blockers Claire Ham and Conley Kipp closed out the game.

“We kind of let up a little bit,” Gan said after building comfortable leads, mostly due to Madie Smith’s precise passing resulting in 38 assists.

Another lead was in jeopardy in Game 2. Ham put CdM ahead, 13-6, with one of her eight kills.

La Reina responded with a 10-4 spurt, getting floaters from Daniella Anderson to cut the deficit to one.

“It’s not about how [her ball] gets down,” La Reina Coach Don Hyatt said of Anderson’s 11 kills. “It’s the fact that [her ball] hits the floor.”

Soft, or hard, no shot gave the Regents a lead in the first two games.

“We’re all just really excited for Tuesday,” said Amanda Nickel, who led CdM with 15 kills. “We want to definitely redeem ourselves.”