Carpinteria pulled out a tight second set against host Bishop Diego, propelling the Warriors to a 3-0 sweep in a non-league boys volleyball match on Wednesday at the Brick House.
The match scores were 25-16, 26-24, 25-18.
Carpinteria coach Mickey Caughey said the second-set win “gave us the momentum and confidence we needed to win the third set. This was our second second sweep in nights, and it felt good.”
The Warriors swept Rio Mesa the previous night.
Carpinteria senior captain and setter Gavin Lohuis dished out 31 assists, picked up eight digs and had four solo blocks to lead the Warriors against Bishop Diego.
Freshman middle Sebastian Campuzano posted five solo blocks for the second straight match. Outside hitter Diesel Slade posted a double-double of 11 kills and 19 digs; Zach Isaac recorded nine kills, 15 digs and four aces; Joaquin Gonzalez finished with eight kills, three aces and two solo blocks and libero Sebastian McCurry picked up 22 digs and served four aces.
Bishop Diego coach Dillan Bennett said Carpinteria has an experienced squad and that made a difference in the match.
“While we may have a roster of juniors and seniors, we are very young,” said Bennett. “If you think about it, these juniors last year had one JV volleyball match with the overlapping of football and volleyball seasons, and none the year before during the shutdown. We have first-time players stepping into varsity roles as a result of the time away from the court.”
Football star Sam Mikaele, who has been sidelined due to a knee injury, played his first athletic contest since March of 2021 and led the Cardinals with 12 kills and four blocks.
Mikaele is headed to Texas, El Paso on a football scholarship.
“It was great to see Sam return and play well,” said Bennett. “Having to sit for two consecutive football seasons watching was brutal, and he’s getting one last opportunity to represent Bishop in a volleyball uniform this season.”
Austin Carty had 17 assists and three digs.
“Austin Carty had one JV match last season as a setter, and now he’s learning to run the offense and be a leader on the court,” said Bennett.
He noted the group’s frustration after the loss should fire up the team to get better.
“I think this group realized they need to work harder to get where they want to be. We are going to have a great practice tomorrow,” said Bennett.
Bishop (0-1) is back in action Saturday at Oxnard to play against Viewpoint and Canyon of Canyon Country.
Carpinteria (2-0) plays at Laguna Blanca on Friday.