Cathedral High School of Los Angeles won its third straight CIF-Southern Section Division 4 volleyball title May 24 with an exciting four-set victory over Bishop Montgomery of Torrance.
In the final played at Cerritos College, the Phantoms, coached by Michael Godoy recorded a 25-18, 25-20, 20-25, 25-22 win over the Knights, coached by Kevin Norman. The two teams, which traded the top ranking several times throughout the season in Division 4, had split their two regular season meetings, with Bishop Montgomery winning a four-set match on April 8 and Cathedral winning in straight sets on May 5. They tied for first in league play at 7-1.
Both teams also won difficult four-set semifinal matches on May 21. Bishop Montgomery outlasted La Salle, 19-25, 32-30, 25-20 and 25-23, while Cathedral won over St. Margaret’s, 25-16, 24-26, 25-21 and 25-22. Cathedral (28-11) ended the regular season at No. 1, followed by Bishop Montgomery (24-10) and La Salle (23-12).
In the Division 1 championship match, Huntington Beach outlasted Loyola in four sets, 25-17, 20-25, 25-17, 25-10. The Cubs — which concluded its season with a record of 24-4 — had rallied to defeat Corona de Mar in the May 21 semifinals: 25-17, 20-25, 18-25, 25-23 and — in a nail-biting final set — 15-14.
The CIF Southern California Regional Volleyball Championships (for which qualifying teams are consolidated into three divisions) began this week, with first round matches scheduled May 27, semifinals May 29 and finals May 31 at Cerritos College. The first round matches for Catholic school qualifiers:
—Division 1: No. 3 seed Loyola defeated Carson, 25-15, 25-14, 25-27, 25-20, and will play at No. 2 seed Buchanan (of Clovis) on May 28 in the semifinals.
—Division 2: No. 6 seed Cathedral lost to La Costa Canyon, 25-10, 25-21, 25-19.
—Division 3: No. 4 seed Bishop Montgomery defeated LACES, 25-6, 25-11, 25-14, and will play at No. 1 seed Laguna Beach on May 29 in the semifinals.
