Newport Harbor boys’ volleyball sweeps San Clemente to reach CIF Division 1 semifinals

A berth in the CIF Southern Section Division 1 boys’ volleyball semifinals was up for grabs Saturday night at Newport Harbor High.

Dayne Chalmers and the top-seeded Sailors took care of business, reaching the semifinals for the third straight year.

The senior finished with 18 kills, and Newport Harbor swept San Clemente 25-21, 25-18, 25-20 in the quarterfinal playoff match.

The Sailors (34-1) will play at Los Angeles Loyola (21-3) in the semifinals on Wednesday at 6 p.m. The Cubs defeated No. 4-seeded Redondo Union 22-25, 25-22, 25-23, 25-23 in the quarterfinals.

“We have to go on the road, so that’s always tough,” said Sailors coach Rocky Ciarelli, whose team is looking to advance to the section final for the second consecutive year. “But we played on the road at least some this year, so we understand what we have to do. We have to prepare and be ready.”

Ciarelli said San Clemente played very well in the first set and third set, and he knew it was going to be a battle. Newport Harbor senior Jack Higgs had 14 kills.

“It’s just a good team,” Tritons coach Ken Goldstone said of Newport Harbor, ranked No. 1 in the state by MaxPreps.com. “Newport has five veterans who have been together for a while in club and high school.”

Higgs was satisfied with his team’s performance.

“We stayed consistent all through the three sets that we played,” Higgs said. “The third set was a little bit more tight, and our main goal was to stay focused and consistent during that time.

“We will have to improve getting the ball to the setter quicker.”

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ANDREW LENNOX is a contributor to Times Community News.