San Marcos fought valiantly against a superior Arroyo Grande team in the opening round of the CIF boys’ volleyball playoffs Friday, but the Eagles proved to be too much in a 3-1 home-court victory. Scores were 22-25, 25-27, 25-18, 21-25.
The Royals rallied to run away with game three but were bested by the 14-1 Eagles in a tough match.
Exceptional play by Andrew Grimes, Michael York and Neil Green took advantage of good setting by Danny Nguyen, Erik Holliday and others. Grimes had a game-high 31 kills.
After a slow start, San Marcos rode a late-season surge to a third-place finish in the Channel League and a playoff berth. Friday’s match marked the last time retiring head coach Jon Lee would lead his Royals into battle after a 23-year career.
Michael Holliday is a San Marcos High parent.