Hawks return to CCS finals

Mount Madonna's Jake Getz readies to hit the ball past two Willow Glen players during the fourth game of their match Saturday at Independence High in San Jose. (Glenn Cravens/Register-Pajaronian)

SAN JOSE — The Hawks’ tournament life flashed before their eyes.

They flashed back to reality and got the latest job done. And now, they’ll play for a Central Coast Section boys volleyball championship.

Mount Madonna School is one victory away from the title after surviving a four-game battle with Willow Glen of San Jose in the CCS Division II semifinals on Saturday at Independence High.

Mount Madonna won 25-16, 24-26, 25-19, 25-23. It will face Sacred Heart Cathedral in the championship match on Tuesday at 5:30 p.m.

The Hawks didn't let a second-game meltdown get to them, and a mixture of attacks in the final two games helped seal the contest.

Willow Glen, which had survived a five-game battle just to play in Saturday's contest, looked liked it was primed to send the match to a fifth game. The Rams had the lead for most of the fourth game, and a kill by Dan Reiton gave them a 20-17 advantage, prompting the Hawks to take a timeout.

It didn't look like the Hawks were going to rally until Jake Getz hit the ball past a couple of Willow Glen defenders. The Hawks then got two court-shaking blocks on Reiton to take a 22-21 lead.

The teams traded points and then Reiton got a prime opportunity to make Mount Madonna pay for their blocks. But his kill attempt went wide, putting the Hawks on the brink.

Reiton rectified himself with a kill on the next point to close the gap to 24-23. But the Hawks got the job done by blocking a kill attempt to close out the match.



For the complete article see the 05-15-2012 issue.

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