Bishop Diego boys volleyball finished as the Runner-Up of the seventh annual 11-team Cardinal Classic on Saturday inside the Brick House, falling to South Pasadena in the championship.
After a strong day that featured three consecutive victories, the Cardinals dropped the title matchup by a score of 25-22 as their run at back-to-back titles fell just short.
“While I’m sure a lot of our returning guys are bitter about today’s final result, I couldn’t be more pleased with how our team continues to improve,” Bishop Diego head coach Dillan Bennett said.
“We used more guys in different positions today, had a chance to run some different play sets, and showed a great deal of blocking improvement today.”
Bishop Diego went 2-0 in pool play, beginning with a three-set sweep of Coastal Christian, 25-21, 25-14, 25-17. The tournament hosts followed that up with a sweep of Hueneme, 25-9, 25-13, 25-16.
In the semifinal matchup, the Cardinals cruised to a 25-9 win over Rio Mesa to punch their ticket to the championship.
John Michael Flint paced the Cardinals’ offense with 35 kills and three aces to go along with a pair of blocks. Kingston Bustos and Damien Krautmann shined as well with 17 and 16 kills, respectively.
Meanwhile, Tyler Roberts (7 kills, 5 aces, 3 blocks) and Luke Walters (100 assists, 7 aces, 5 kills, 4 blocks) made their impacts felt as well for Bishop Diego.
“We’ve worked really hard to be more physical at the net, and it showed in our blocking performance today with 14 blocks,” Bennett said. “As well as we’re playing right now, there are still areas Coach Jon Roberts and I can see where we can get better.
“Setting out of system, making better decisions, attacking and serving, and being scrappier on defense are all areas where we’re looking to improve as we enter the second third of the season.”
Rio Mesa and Nipomo tied for third place in the Cardinal Classic, while Cate registered a 10th-place finish alongside Channel Islands.
Bishop Diego (13-3, 4-0 Tri-Valley League) will clash with Dunn for a league matchup on Monday in Los Olivos.