Despite being denied a three-peat in the Southern Section Division 1 playoffs, the Mater Dei High girls volleyball team still ended the season a champion — and ranked No. 1 in California.
The Monarchs (35-5) captured their second Open Division state title in three years and their third overall with a 25-13, 25-22, 25-18 sweep of Rocklin on Saturday night at Santiago Canyon College.
Getting 31 kills from USC signee Layli Ostavar and 43 assists from Cal State Bakersfield-bound setter Sam Capinpin, Mater Dei closed out the Sac-Joaquin Section Division 2 winners with a 13-6 run in the third set.
Dan O’Dell’s squad won 20 of its last 21 matches — its only blemish being a four-set defeat to Sierra Canyon in the CIF-SS final.
Earlier Saturday, Cypress made the most of its first state finals appearance by sweeping Clovis West, 25-20, 25-23, 25-22, to win the Division II title under head coach Alex Griffiths.
Isabella Faro had 14 kills and fellow senior Hannah Schoffstall dished out 30 for the Centurions (25-10), who swept Santa Ana Foothill on November 6 in the CIF-SS Division 3 final.
It was redemption for Cypress, which had lost to Bishop Diego in the CIF-SS Division 3 semifinals and to Long Beach Poly in the first round of the Division II regionals last season.
On Friday, Harvard-Westlake earned its sixth title and first since 2021 with a 25-22, 25-14, 25-17 victory over Roseville Woodcreek in the Division I championship match.
Kylie Parker pounded 14 kills and dug 15 balls, Sophia Cotter had 11 kills and senior middle blockers Lauryn Lewis (committed to Penn) and Maya Stillwell (committed to Northwestern) controlled the net for the Wolverines (28-8), who finished third in the Mission League behind Sierra Canyon and Marymount and lost to Mater Dei in the Southern Section Division 1 quarterfinals, a remarkable turnaround for a team that had a losing record and missed the playoffs last year.
Coach Morgan Wijay returned to the program in January after a decade-long stint at Bishop Alemany, where she guided the Warriors to back-to-back CIF titles in 2021 and 2022. Wijay was on Adam Black’s staff back in 2007 when Harvard-Westlake won the Division III state title.
If you think Trinity League football is the best in the country, then the Mission League might be its equivalent in boys’ basketball this season.
“It’s off the charts,” Harvard-Wesltake coach David Rebibo said in describing the talent of the eight Mission League teams.
“It’s absolutely ridiculous,” Chaminade coach Bryan Cantwell said. “We could have all eight teams potentially in the top 30 in Southern California.”
Transfers, promising freshmen and the development of young players has set the stage for a league schedule in January that will allow fans to see players who might be soon appearing on weekend TV for college basketball teams or on NBA rosters.
Harvard-Westlake has won seven consecutive league titles and remains in the title mix. The coaching is so good in the league and the talent so plentiful that it would be no surprise if multiple teams win Southern Section titles depending on what divisions in which they are placed.
It’s not as if the league didn’t have talent before this season, but Cantwell pointed out, “There’s just more on all of the teams.”
Every team except Harvard-Westlake added transfer students this season. The biggest were St. John Bosco senior Brandon McCoy going to Sierra Canyon, 7-foot-3 Cherif Millogo arriving at St. Francis from Boston and 6-9 Sam Mbingazo returning to Bishop Alemany after playing at Iowa Prep last season.
One big loss, though, has been suffered at Sherman Oaks Notre Dame, where 6-7 Tyran Stokes, ranked No. 1 by many in the class of 2026, won’t be playing for the Knights. He withdrew from school last week. There are others ready to help replace him.
Zachary White has committed to San Diego State and NaVorro Bowman has gotten so good that he’s become one of the best prospects from the class of 2027.
Sierra Canyon could start a lineup solely of transfers, with Maximo Adams in his second season with the Trailblazers and one of the best players in the class of 2026. Brannon Martinsen, a 6-6 senior, arrived from JSerra.
Sierra Canyon’s Maximo Adams hugs coach Andre Chevalier.
(Steve Galluzzo / For The Times)
Harvard-Westlake isn’t going anywhere, with the return of standout senior guard Joe Sterling, a Texas commit, senior center Dominique Bentho and guards Pierce Thompson, Amir Jones and Cole Holden. Crespi returns the Barnes twins, Isaiah and Carter.
“There are anywhere between three and five Division 1 players on every team with D1 potential between the sophomores and juniors,” Rebibo said. “The senior class in this league is unreal. It makes the league as competitive as it’s been in a very long time.”
As if talent weren’t enough of a draw, there’s the coaching. Former Lakers star Derek Fisher, who used to coach the New York Knicks, is in his third season at Crespi and no one is intimidated coaching against him. Chaminade’s Bryan Cantwell, St. Francis’ Todd Wolfson and Sierra Canyon’s Andre Chevalier are veteran coaches who’ve all won section championships. Loyola has a first-year coach, Cam Joyce, from Ohio, and Mike DuLaney guided Bishop Alemany to a Division III state title in 2024.
“It’s going to be really competitive and really fun,” Cantwell said.
Throughout Southern California, there are plenty of elite prospects. There’s Missouri-bound Jason Crowe Jr. of Inglewood; Kansas-bound Luke Barnett of Mater Dei; high-scoring junior guard Gene Roebuck of La Mirada; Georgia Tech commit Kaiden Bailey of Santa Margarita; top sophomore transfers Evan Willis and Shalen Sheppard of Crossroads; heavily recruited Christian Collins of St. John Bosco; dynamic senior guard Josiah Johnson of Mayfair; standout senior guard Isaiah Rogers of Corona Centennial; 6-11 Josh Irving of Pasadena, who has committed to Texas A&M; 6-6 rising junior Kevin Keshishyan of Los Altos.
Two of the best guards in the Trinity League. Georgia Tech commit Kaiden Bailey of Santa Margarita and Kansas commit Luke Barnett of Mater Dei. pic.twitter.com/sjjy8EWC1p
As far as teams, Sierra Canyon, Santa Margarita, St. John Bosco, Redondo Union, Rolling Hills Prep, Harvard-Westlake, Corona Centennial and Damien all appear headed to top teams status.
Unfortunately, the City Section has seen most of its top players transfer or graduate. Palisades is the preseason favorite with the arrival of the 6-6 Popoola twins, Elijah and Olujimi, juniors from Las Vegas.
