By BRIAN REED-BAIOTTO, Sports Editor Even if you had a dog in the fight, people left the Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy gym Thursday night happy knowing they had just witnessed a classic battle. Lakewood, ranked No. 7 in the CIF-SS Division 1 poll, and FSHA, ranked No. 10, scratched and clawed for every point they […]
By BRIAN REED-BAIOTTO, Sports Editor
Even if you had a dog in the fight, people left the Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy gym Thursday night happy knowing they had just witnessed a classic battle.
Lakewood, ranked No. 7 in the CIF-SS Division 1 poll, and FSHA, ranked No. 10, scratched and clawed for every point they could get.
In the end, though, Lakewood had too many horses, and the Lancers took out the Tologs in four games.
Lakewood ended the prep career of one of the nation’s finest in Kayla Lund, thanks to scores of 25-20, 28-26, 25-27, 25-20, in a CIF-SS Division 1 second-round game.
Even the scores don’t quite do justice to how well both sides fought, and the athleticism that was on display in front of a boisterous crowd at FSHA.
Destynie Villiamu led Lakewood to its 30th victory with her 30 kills, and 14 digs.
Julia Crawford, younger sister of Lakewood baseball star, and soon-to-be MLB player, JP Crawford, added 17 kills for the Lancers (30-4).
Kayla Lund was brilliant in her swan song.
The future Univ. of Pittsburgh athlete had a match-best 33 kills, 19 digs and 6 blocks for FSHA (24-10).
Ellis DeJardin was another of the many Tologs who played well, as she added 14 kills, 12 digs and 4 blocks.
Lakewood led in all four games at some point, but FSHA, behind their superstar, kept fighting back.
“Lakewood is a great team,” Lund said. “They played with heart and played with fire, and we responded well and fought with good energy. It came down to momentum and who could get those game-changing points. We fought our hearts out. The only way I’m going to go down is fighting.”
The Lancers will face Mater Dei in the quarterfinals on Saturday.
“Flintridge is very competitive,” Lakewood coach Mike Wadley said. “They have two outsides (hitters) that are fantastic. We knew we could go after their middles and kind of exploit that.”
Colleen Clapp added 27 assists for the Tologs, while Cate Doud had 30 assists, and Toni Conlon chipped in with 3 kills and 9 digs.
“The difference was just errors,” FSHA coach Ernest Banaag said. “It goes to any sport. Whoever commits the less errors usually wins. Lakewood minimized errors and forced us to do more than we had to.”
Lakewood’s Shelbie Dobmeier had 60 assists, and 7 digs, and Ally Busch added 19 digs.
Both Coaches Speak About 4-Time All-American, Kayla Lund:
Lakewood coach Mike Wadley: “Respectful girl. Really represents the school amazingly well. Not just one of the best in the area. She’s one of the best in the country. Kids like that are once in a lifetime kids. She is a very blessed athlete. My buddy at Pitt (U of Pittsburgh coach) is going to have a lot of fun with her (on his team).”
FSHA coach Ernest Banaag: “Words can’t even tell you what she really means to us. If you were to build a team, you’d have to start with her first. Kayla Lund can do everything.
Kayla Lund’s Thoughts On Prep Career Ending:
Lund: “I’m not going to take any individuals accomplishments with me to Pittsburgh.I’m proud of what I did, but I couldn’t have done it without my teammates. I’ll miss the school and miss my sisters (teammates). I’ll take all of that with me.”
** Please check back later for video highlights and interviews.
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