Chargers denied by Newport

HUNTINGTON BEACH — With no matches in the two weeks prior to Thursday’s Sunset League showdown at Edison High, the Newport Harbor boys’ volleyball team had been untested.

But the Sailors are rarely, if ever, unprepared.

Sophomore outside hitter Cody Caldwell had 26 kills as the Sailors won in four, 25-22, 21-25, 25-20, 25-23, to take sole possession of first place in league.

Caldwell remembered how his team outlasted the Chargers in the Orange County Championships semifinals March 20, on their way to the title.

“We knew they wanted to beat us,” Caldwell said. “We had to come out here and play well. We hadn’t played in a while, but we came out here and did pretty well in the beginning.”

Newport Harbor (14-6, 3-0 in league), the defending league champs, hadn’t played since a five-game win over Marina on April 2. But the Tars never trailed in Game 1 on Thursday. Caldwell set the tone early with a kill and a service ace on the first two points, one of his three aces on the match.

There were other reasons for Coach Dan Glenn to be happy. Senior outside hitter Hamilton Day got his first extended playing time since he sprained his ankle in mid-March, finishing with 11 kills.

Senior setter Darren Leggett had 29 assists and junior Jackson Carmack added 19 more for the Sailors, who also got 15 digs from senior captain JB Green and nine digs from junior Connor Curry.

After the Chargers (12-9, 3-1) took Game 2, the third game went back-and-forth early. But, with the score tied, 9-9, the Sailors went on a 9-4 run capped by a big block from junior Will Connelly to take control.

In Game 4, Newport Harbor opened up a 17-12 advantage before holding off a late Chargers rally sparked by junior opposite Torey Darin, who matched Caldwell with 26 kills.

“We dug the ball and got the ball to Cody at the end,” Glenn said. “He did a really nice job attacking for us.”

Darin added five digs and two service aces for the Chargers. Dillon Auxier had 10 kills and four digs, Michael Brinkley had 14 digs and Jeff Newell added 52 assists.

Edison showed its frustration midway through Game 4, when Coach Brian Boone thought an attack from junior Ryan Smith was well in. He held up his hands to the referee about a foot apart, not auditioning for a sub sandwich commercial but instead showing how far in he thought Smith’s ball landed.

In the end, however, Boone said his team was just outplayed.

“I think we’re pretty evenly matched,” Boone said. “We came out a little bit too fired up and lost our basic focus. We didn’t really even show up in Game 1. We started the fire in Game 2. All credit to Newport though. They made fewer mistakes tonight.”