NORWALK — Just two years removed from a 1-23 season, the El Toro boys volleyball team reached the summit and made school history in the process.

The Chargers capped a sensational turnaround Saturday with a victory over Quartz Hill in four sets, 17-25, 28-26, 25-21, 25-19, in the Division 6 final at Cerritos College.

It is the first CIF-SS boys volleyball championship for El Toro.

El Toro coach Sean Dixon, in his third-year at the helm, reflected on the journey that saw his team go from nearly worst to first.

““To be the first program to do it at El Toro and really to be a program that started at the bottom and made it to the top,” Dixon said, “obviously we have state next week, but, you know, they’re going to remember this for the rest of their lives. And it’s going to be such a good experience that they look back on fondly.”

Senior outside hitter Ryan Lim collected a match-high 24 kills and 14 digs for El Toro (18-15), which was the No. 2 seed in Division 6.

Senior Jeremy Gould finished with 12 kills,12 digs and three aces and Ziyuan Liu added 10 kills. Senior setter Moses Kim had 52 assists while controlling the action while Ben Earnsahw and Colin Fletcher provided key plays in crucial moments.

The Royals (27-13) took the opening set thanks to their middle blocker, Joseph Bonner, who had four kills in the set. Quartz Hill also tallied six total blocks at the net.

“I think we were all a little bit nervous and to be fair, I think that is a good thing,” Dixon said. “But it was really nothing new for us. This is, I want to say, the fourth match in a row where we’ve been down a set at a certain point.”

Lim shared his thoughts on the pregame and opening-set jitters as well.

“I was feeling it myself, the entire bus ride here, to be honest,” Lim said. “Yeah, I was walking here, and my hands were shaking and everything. First set, my chest was tight and everything, and I guarantee you, the other guys were feeling it too. But, you know, once we get in our rhythm, we ball out.”

“I give credit to our two captains, Moses Kim and Ben Earnshaw, for really just keeping the guys calm on the court,” Dixon said. “Li bringing everyone in after every point. I think that was just the biggest difference.”

The Chargers fought off a set-point opportunity for the Royals in the second set, on a swing by Earnshaw, then after a service error , found themselves in danger of going down 2-0 in the match once again.

Lim’s kill and Fletcher’s ace gave El Toro a chance at their own set point, which Gould helped win, 28-26, after a long rally and a tough swing at the pin.

“We just kind of got fired up after that (first set),” Gould said. “We’re like, ‘We can’t let this be our last play, you know? We gotta just bring all we have.”

Dixon praised Lim’s play, especially as the match progressed. Lim had eight kills in the second set, five in the third and six in the fourth.

“He’s just one of those guys that gets stronger as the game goes on,” Dixon said.

Dixon took one final introspective glance at his team’s journey and described the joy it brought him.

“I’m more happy for the guys because it’s really tough to win only one match (in 2023) and really just to stay positive after you’re basically losing every game,” he said. “I’m just so happy for them. You know, they really worked hard. I just remember them being young sophomores who really just got their first taste of varsity. A lot of them didn’t play JV, it’s just incredible.”

By Bill Hester, Special to the Post-Dispatch

Area state medalists

It was fitting Connor Koski clinched El Camino Real’s championship with a block on match point in Saturday night’s City Section Open Division boys volleyball final at Birmingham High in Lake Balboa.

“I timed my jump and I thought it was going out but I guess it hit [an opposing player’s] foot on the way down,” said an exuberant Koski, who moved from middle blocker to opposite hitter before the playoffs. “I asked [coach Alyssa Lee] to switch me and it worked.”

El Camino Real’s triumph culminated in a 25-21, 25-20, 20-25, 25-21 victory over top-seeded Venice, but the title was four years in the making. Eleven of the Royals’ 12 players are seniors.

“We’re all friends, we all trust each other, and it’s a dream come true to win a championship in one of our last matches together,” said Tyler Lee, who paced the squad with 14 kills. “We’ve lost our share of five setters, so we wanted to end this thing in four.”

Connor Koski hammers a kill over Venice’s Sam Engelen in the City Section Open Division boys’ volleyball final at Birmingham High on Saturday.

(Steve Galluzzo / For The Times)

Koski, El Camino Real’s lone junior, had eight kills, including one to end the second set. Dev Vunnam and Christian Romero also each had eight kills, Jackson Riepe had seven and Nicolas Gerola served four aces, the first of which gave El Camino Real the first set.

The third-seeded Royals (27-13) got hot at the right time and avenged a pair of West Valley League losses to Chatsworth by ending the Chancellors’ bid for a third straight Open title with a shocking 25-23, 25-16, 25-22 semifinal upset Tuesday.

“I’ve known this group since their freshman year and I’ve push them hard in practice to prepare them for those situations,” said Lee, who understands the intensity of every match in the West Valley League, having played libero for Granada Hills before graduating in 2009. “The physical talent is there but the mental training is so important. You have to stay focused and can’t let up.”

Lee coached the boys to the Division I title in 2016 (the Open Division debuted in 2018) and guided the girls to the Open championship in 2023. She also has coached the girls to two beach volleyball crowns.

El Camino Real’s (left to right) Christian Romero, Connor Koski and Jackson Riepe celebrate a match point during the City Section Open Division championship match against Venice on May 17, 2025.

(Steve Galluzzo / For The Times)

“The first two times we played Chatsworth I just let the boys play but I game-planned a lot for the semifinals,” Lee said. “We needed a big guy on the right like Connor to block and get some kills.”

Trailing by four points early in the third set and in danger of being swept, the Gondoliers (36-6) used an 8-0 run to surge into the lead and finished it on Nathan Hoggatt’s emphatic kill. Noah Smith had 10 kills for Venice, last year’s Division I champion.

Something had to give as Venice entered on an 11-match winning streak dating back to April 21 (dropping only one set in the process) while El Camino Real had won five consecutive matches and 15 straight sets since April 9.

In Saturday’s Division II final, hitter Izac Garcia helped Valley Academy of Arts and Sciences take home its first City title after a 20-25, 25-22, 25-21, 25-15 triumph over Mendez, which was seeking its first crown since back-to-back Division III championships in 2021-22.

Valley Academy of Arts and Sciences players celebrate after defeating Mendez to win the City Section Division I boys’ volleyball championship Saturday.

(Steve Galluzzo / For The Times)

Hamilton, last year’s Division V champion, moved up to Division IV and beat Port of LA for the championship. In Division V, Wilson downed Harbor Teacher for its first-ever title.

On the same floor Friday, top-seeded Taft captured its seventh section crown, sixth in Division I and first since 2015 with its 25-10, 25-20, 25-17 sweep of No. 2 Carson. Arman Mercado, who took over the girls’ program in 2000 and the boys two years later, coached the girls to their first Open Division title in the fall and has guided the Toreadors to 22 finals appearances.

East Valley swept Maywood CES for the Division III title — the Falcons’ first in boys volleyball.

Also on Friday, Mira Costa outlasted Huntington Beach in five sets in a South Bay showdown for the Southern Section Division 1 championship at Cerritos College. The top-seeded Mustangs prevailed, 25-19, 22-25, 25-19, 29-31, 15-11, behind 25 kills from Grayson Bradford — the last from the right side to end the match.

Mateo Fuerbringer added 17 kills for Mira Costa, which fell in three sets to Loyola in the finals last spring. Logan Hutnick led the charge for the second-seeded Oilers, who staved off four championship points in a wild fourth set. It was the Mustangs’ ninth section title and first since 2021.

Mater Dei rallied to beat Peninsula 20-25, 25-17, 25-13, 25-19 in Division 2.

What seems to be a yearly occurrence, Naperville North competes in the IHSA Girls Water Polo Sectional Final, as they take on Naperville Central. North is in search of the program’s ninth sectional plaque, and seventh in a row. Today marks the final home game for Hall of Fame Head Coach Andy McWhirter, who looks to go out with a bang against a Naperville Central squad that’s looking for its first sectional title since 2017. This highlight is sponsored by BMO.

Huskies get right to work and open with a commanding lead

Huskies waste no time! Ria Vaid lobs a pass over to Ava Podkasik and fires in the first goal of the game.

One goal is nice, but two are even better. Natalie Brown chases the loose ball, dribbles, and wins the one-on-one battle.

Later on, Brown dry passes to Payton Schrier, and she skips it in. North leads 5-0.

The Redhawks need an answer, but Rugi Stackevicius jumps out of the net for a save and swims the rock out of harm’s way.

The Huskies get back to the scoring. Podkasik sidearms a shot into the right corner as North continues to open the floodgates.

Into the second quarter, and Cate Czochara finds Ria Vaid as she throws a laser right into your living room.

Naperville North adds another IHSA girls water polo sectional title to the trophy case

It’s all blue and orange since the first whistle, with Molly Depies tallying up the goals. Caire Plackett scores the lone goal for the Redhawks, but it’s Naperville North that emerges victorious, 12-1, culminating in the program’s ninth sectional title.

New Naperville North AD Jon Periero jumps in the water to celebrate with the team as the Huskies move on to the state series! They’ll face Fremd in the IHSA Girls Water Polo State Quarterfinals at 5:45 p.m. at Stevenson High School on Thursday, May 22.

For more prep sports highlights, visit the Naperville Sports Weekly page.