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    Corona del Mar boys volleyball ready to rally in Sunset League race
    • March 31, 2026

    Corona del Mar’s boys volleyball team recently suffered a couple of losses in the Sunset League.

    The Sea Kings, though, still have time — and the talent and experience — to finish at the top of the league standings.

    “We have a bunch of guys who communicate well and support each other,” said Corona del Mar senior setter Drake Foley. “We believe in ourselves that we can win CIF and state.”

    The Sea Kings had a win over Newport Harbor in four sets early in Sunset League play, but they lost twice in league last week, to Edison and to Huntington Beach.

    Early in the season Corona del Mar coach Katey Thompson talked about the team’s experienced roster. The Sea Kings have many returnees from last season’s team that played in the CIF Southern Section Division 1 and CIF State Division I playoffs.

    “The strength of our team is our seniors,” Thompson said. “It’s rare to have six seniors who not only are very good players but who are also really great friends. They’re such high-quality human beings.”

    Corona del Mar beat Huntington Beach in league play earlier this season.

    The Sea Kings have a big league match Tuesday at home against Newport Harbor.

    The standings coming into this week have Huntington Beach (7-1 in league) in first place followed by Corona del Mar (6-2), Newport Harbor (5-3) and Los Alamitos (4-3).

    NOTES

    Boys volleyball teams will be placed into playoff divisions and seeded in those divisions according to their end-of-season computer ranking. The next rankings release is Wednesday. …

    The CIF-SS playoffs begin April 29 and there will be nine divisions. Division 1 again will be an eight-team division using a pool-play format; the other eight divisions will use traditional brackets. …

    The CIF-SS finals will be May 14-16 at Cerritos College. …

    The top six finishers in Division 1 pool play automatically qualify for the CIF Southern California Regional playoffs. The CIF State finals will be at Fresno City College on May 30. …

    Los Alamitos beat Tesoro in the Silver Division final of the Best of the West tournament in San Diego in early March.

    ORANGE COUNTY TOP 10 TEAMS

    (Records through March 29)

    1. Corona del Mar (21-5): The Sea Kings advanced to the finals of the early-season Best in the West tournament, losing to Mira Costa, the CIF Southern Section’s No. 1 team, in the tournament final.

    2. Huntington Beach (14-2): The Oilers, in first place in the Sunset League with a 6-1 league record, split their two league matches against Corona del Mar including winning the most recent match in four sets.

    3. Newport Harbor (21-7): The Sailors are 5-3 in the Sunset League including a sweep last week over Edison.

    4. Los Alamitos (18-6): The Griffins are 4-3 in the Sunset League including back-to-back wins over Edison and Newport Harbor in league matches.

    5. Santa Margarita (21-9): The Eagles entered this week in first place in the Trinity League with a 3-0 league record.

    6. San Clemente (12-9): The Tritons went into this week in first place in the South Coast League with a 3-0 record that includes a four-set victory over Tesoro.

    7. Edison (10-11): The Chargers have Sunset League victories over Corona del Mar and Fountain Valley and have defeated Mater Dei, Servite and Tesoro in nonleague matches.

    8. Tesoro (19-4): The Titans have two wins over Beckman, lost to San Clemente in a South Coast League match.

    9. Fountain Valley (16-8): The Barons have two five-set wins over Marina in Sunset League play.

    10. Beckman (20-7): The Patriots have played a rugged schedule that includes a win over Edison, losses to Santa Margarita and Newport Harbor.

    PLAYERS TO WATCH

    Ben Arguello, Huntington Beach, Sr.: Arguello was All-Sunset League first team and All-Orange County second team last season.

    Daniel Booker, Corona del Mar, Jr.: An All-Sunset League first team selection last season as a sophomore.

    Ben Brown, Corona del Mar, Sr.: Brown was All-CIF Southern Section Division 1and All-Orange County first team last season.

    Henry Clemo, Newport Harbor, Sr.: Clemo made All-Sunset League first team and All-County third team last year.

    Max Draper, Tesoro, Sr.: Draper was All-Orange County second team last season.

    Drake Foley, Corona del Mar, Sr.: The Sea Kings setter had 20 assists when Corona del Mar swept Huntington Beach in a Sunset League match this month.

    Logan Hutnick, Huntington Beach, Jr.: Hutnick was last season’s Orange County player of the year.

    Jeremiah Potasi, Mater Dei, Jr.: Potasi was All-Orange County fourth team last year.

    Chase Wallin, Santa Margarita, Jr.: He was All-County third team last season.

    JP Wardy, Newport Harbor, Sr.: He was All-Sunset League first team and All-Orange County second team last season.

     

     Orange County Register 

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