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October 16, 2025
By Loren Kopff • @LorenKopff on X
When the Artesia High girls volleyball team hosted Whitney High this past Tuesday, the last automatic playoff berth in the 605 League was on the line. However, there was still a possibility of a play-in tiebreaker depending on the results of the match, and that of Oxford Academy’s regular season finale at John Glenn High.
Four of the five sets were decided by either two or three points, but a controversial rotation violation call on Artesia in the fifth set paved the way for the Wildcats to escape with a hard fought 22-25, 25-16, 25-22, 25-27, 16-4 victory this past Tuesday evening. The win sealed second place outright for Whitney (20-12, 7-3) while the Pioneers ended the season at 9-10, 5-5 and in fourth place and Oxford Academy took third place with a 6-4 league mark.
Had Artesia defeated Whitney to force a three-way tie, those two teams would have met again this Wednesday for the right to advance to the CIF-Southern Section playoffs. Oxford Academy won the coin flip earlier in the morning to automatically secure second place.
“We had our own destiny in our hands,” said Whitney head coach Mark Kato. “It was a very close [match], but I’m so proud of the girls and they deserve it.”
This is the second straight season the Pioneers will miss the playoffs as they were involved in a tiebreaker match last season. Artesia has been in the playoffs three times in at least the past 28 seasons, which came in 2010, 2021 and 2023, and has finished above .500 just once, which came two seasons ago.
“It has been a very intense, but challenging season, said Artesia first-year head coach Francisco Serrano. “First, taking over the program and getting to know the players, getting to know the games and what they’re capable of and what they can do in a game.”
The pivotal moment in the match came in the deciding set with the Pioneers, which bolted out to a 6-1 lead, up 12-9 and junior libero Averie Garrison serving. However, they were called for a rotation violation, and the Wildcats added another point on a kill from junior outside hitter Emma Prowse to make it 12-11.
Artesia still had the lead and was plying for match point when a serving error gave the Wildcats the serve where Prowse slammed down two straight kills to end the match and avoid the extra session the next day.
“The [second referee] was calling it pretty strict the whole game,” said Kato. “I told our girls to stay in rotation before the serve. It’s a part of the game; I didn’t see their rotation. I don’t know if they were out of rotation, but I’m certainly happy it was called that way.”
“They claimed that the setter was in front of [senior outside hitter Djulianne Goze], which we really can’t see it from [our bench] until a referee tells us from their perspective,” said Serrano. “It’s kind of unfair because the other team [did it] as well, and it’s not being called. That’s the frustrating part of it. It comes to a point to where it can either make or break a team on those calls.”
A rotation violation was called against Whitney in the first set to make it 21-20 in favor of the Wildcats and against Artesia in the third set to pad Whitney’s lead to 24-21.
There were six ties and one lead change through the first rotation of the opening set and the second rotation would feature 11 straight side-outs for the second straight time. The Wildcats were up 21-18 before an error allowed Garrison to serve where she reeled off five straight points.
Whitney never trailed in the second set as Artesia couldn’t string together more than three straight points at any time, but the third set was almost like the first set. With the score tied 12-12 heading into the second rotation, a lift call and a kill from junior outside hitter Haley Robertson put the hosts up 14-12 before the Pioneers regained the lead following a pair of kills from freshman outside hitter Pressley Pak and a net violation. After that, there were seven more ties and two more lead changes.
The fourth set would see Whitney in front all the way except for five ties until Robertson and senior opposite hitter Camila Orozco had kills to put Artesia ahead 24-23. It would be set point twice before a serving error and an ace from Robertson sent the match to a fifth set. For the entire match, there were 31 ties and 10 lead changes.
“Artesia is a very good team,” said Kato. “They have good hitters; outsides, and the serving was good. They are a force in the 605 League.”
This was the fourth time Artesia played in a five-set match, falling to Firebaugh High, Oxford Academy and Cerritos High all since Sept. 4. Against the last two, the Pioneers had a 2-1 lead heading into the fourth set.
“We had to teach them new techniques,” said Serrano of this season. “We had to go over how to receive a pass and play [at a different position]. So, it took us awhile to get all that going.”
Prowse led the Wildcats with 24 kills while Pak added 20 kills and 10 aces. Senior middle blocker Olachi Anyama and freshman opposite hitter Megan Shaw each pitched in with nine kills. Defensively, sophomore libero Kelsie Kato had 18 digs, Prowse had 15 digs and junior setter Janelle Sales added 12 digs.
“When it’s dark, the stars shine bright,” said Mark Kato of his leaders. “That’s the mark of superstars when they shine; when the team needs them.”
Robertson, who is just one of four underclassmen, led the Pioneers with 26 kills while Goze, who is one of nine seniors, added 23 kills and four aces. Three other players combined for seven kills.
“DJ has been playing club much longer, so that’s an advantage for her; to have that experience and to have that knowledge of the game,” said Serrano. “What I did at the beginning of the season when I took over was have Haley play middle. Then I realized she can do better than that, so I switched her to play outside.”
In other girls volleyball action, three City of Cerritos teams will enter the playoffs as league champions. Cerritos posted its sixth straight sweep in league action as the Dons defeated Pioneer 25-21, 25-22, 25-9 to improve to 23-5, 10-0 in the 605 League. Cerritos also went 4-1 in the Garden Grove Tournament last Saturday.
Gahr High, winners of the Mid-Cities League, took care of Dominguez High 25-12, 25-17, 25-7 to end the regular season at 24-9, 10-0 and Valley Christian High (24-2, 8-0) claimed the Olympic League title. The Defenders swept Maranatha High 25-16, 25-8, 25-12 this past Tuesday.
Finally, Norwalk High swept Mayfair High this past Tuesday to finish in a tie for second place with Warren High in the Gateway League. The Lancers head into the postseason at 14-9, 5-3.
FOOTBALL
605 LEAGUE (Both games played on Oct. 16)
Cerritos (5-2) @ Artesia (3-4)-It doesn’t matter if these teams open the league season against each other, meet in the ninth game of the regular season or face each other in the last game of the regular season, it most likely determines who will win the circuit. That’s why this is the first HMG-Community News Game of the Week. Cerritos has won 15 straight games in the circuit after beginning the 605 League with six straight losses in 2018 and 2019.
That means the Dons have defeated Artesia five straight times, including last season’s 36-7 contest. Before that streak, the Pioneers had won nine straight in the series. Last time Cerritos suited up, it doubled up West Torrance High 28-14 on Oct. 2.
While senior quarterback Justin Sagun has been the heart and soul of the offense, passing for 585 yards and four touchdowns while rushing for another 215 yards with four more touchdowns, this is a running team. Seniors La’Brenton Wilson (84 carries, 491 yards, eight touchdowns) and Jayden Bagaygay (57 carries, 338 yards, two touchdowns) are the key forces in the backfield. Wilson has also caught 14 passes for 242 yards and a pair of scores while junior Terrence Grissom leads in receptions (22) and has 186 yards and a touchdown. On defense, senior Bailey Crawford has four of the 10 sacks the team has while senior Michael Quibrantar has picked off opposing quarterbacks three times.
The Dons have scored over 20 points in their last six games and has allowed under 20 points five times.
Artesia was blasted by Rowland High 57-7 on Oct. 3, the third straight undefeated opponent facing the Pioneers. It was the third time the red and black had been held to single digits and the third time it had allowed over 30 points.
The Pioneers are also more of a running team, led by sophomore Justin Pettus, who has gained 363 yards on 53 carries with five touchdowns. Sophomore Jorge Velazquez is next with 259 yards on 23 touches with three touchdowns and senior Joey Peck (33 carries, 193 yards, two touchdowns). Those two have also combined to throw for 649 yards on 48 completions with four touchdowns and four interceptions.
Prediction: Cerritos 28, Artesia 17
Pioneer (2-5) @ John Glenn (2-5)-What was once a promising first part of the season has turned south for Glenn, which is on a three-game losing streak in which it has scored 13 points. The latest loss was on Oct. 3 when the Eagles fell to Arroyo High 27-6, getting a one-yard touchdown run from senior Jonah Mason in the fourth quarter.
The combined record of Glenn’s non-league opponents is 15-37 and it won’t get easier in the final three games where the league has a combined mark of 10-12.
Glenn had to forfeit its game with Pioneer last season but before that, had taken four of the last five meetings with the Titans, who are coming off a 36-21 loss to Rowland, which is undefeated in seven games.
Pioneer trailed 21-7 at the half and trailed by eight points heading into the fourth quarter. Entering that game, quarterbacks Noah Anderson and Isaiah Janicke had combined for nearly 900 yards with nine touchdowns, but also nine interceptions and Damian Salguero had over 350 rushing yards with a pair of touchdowns.
Prediction: Pioneer 20, Glenn 14
GATEWAY LEAGUE
Dominguez (6-1, 1-1) @ La Mirada High (2-5, 0-2)-When La Mirada was in the former Suburban League, it used to beat up several teams by 40, 50 and 60 points. But last week, the Matadores got a taste of what it feels like to be on the other side, getting pounded by Downey High 67-7. It was the sixth straight loss to the Vikings dating back to 2018 and it was the most points La Mirada had allowed to anyone since a 76-8 loss to St. John Bosco High on Aug. 28, 2015. The Matadores did succumb to Servite High two seasons ago, 60-14.
Dominguez lost for the first time this season last Friday to Warren High, 26-3 but has a rock solid defense that allowed 48 points during the six-game winning streak. Prior to the Warren game, the Dons specialty on offense is the running game where Darrell Frazier had 762 yards and 11 touchdowns with two other players over 100 yards. One of those is quarterback Donnie Johnson III, who has passed for 772 yards and thrown 11 touchdowns and rushed for 157 yards with another three touchdowns.
La Mirada has won all four of its previous meetings with Dominguez, including last season’s 38-27 contest. But making it five in a row will be tough against a team that has already shutout a pair of opponents by a combined score of 116-0 while the Matadores have scored 107 points in seven games.
Prediction: Dominguez 38, La Mirada 14
IRONWOOD LEAGUE
Village Christian High (4-3, 2-0) @ Valley Christian (4-3, 1-1)-For the first time this season, Valley Christian’s offense could not get anything going, settling for a pair of short-yardage field goals from senior Gavin Harper in the first half during last Friday’s 40-6 loss to Aquinas High. Junior quarterback, who has been double trouble for opposing teams, completed 12 of 22 passes for 135 yards, gained 30 yards on 13 carries, and was sacked three times. Senior wide receiver Oliver Boateng caught eight of those passes for 88 yards.
Lunzer, who is the only player to rush for over 100 yards, has tormented opponents for nearly 1,400 yards through the air with Boateng and seniors Sean Bouma and Cole Hefner as his favorite targets. Those three have combined for 1,218 yards and nine touchdowns.
Village Christian had no problems with Capistrano Valley Christian High last Friday in a 44-21 victory. Quarterback Cooper Jackson completed 11 passes for 220 yards and four touchdowns with Bailen Gerhardt hauling in five passes for 127 yards and three touchdowns. The Crusaders had 446 all-purpose yards, and the defense sacked Luke Leisegamg twice and picked him off twice.
Village Christian began the season with two straight blowout wins followed by three straight losses in which it scored a total of 30 points. The Crusaders have won three straight in the series, including last season’s 16-14 contest which for all intense purposes, knocked the Defenders out of the race for one of the three automatic playoff spots.
Prediction: Valley Christian 28, Village Christian 24
MID-CITIES LEAGUE
Norwalk (7-0, 2-0) @ Gahr (4-3, 2-0)-This is the second HMG-Community News Game of the Week as the winner has the inside track of the league title. Norwalk blasted Compton Early College 70-0 last Friday and continues its best start since 2013 when the Lancers won 13 straight games before falling to La Serna High 41-38 in overtime in the Southeast Division championship game. The 70 points are the most in the program’s history since crushing South East High 70-6 on Sept. 9, 2022. Senior running back Diego Cerritos gained 213 yards on nine carries and scored five touchdowns while senior Daron Walker also rushed nine times for 148 yards and found the end zone four times. They have become the latest of a long list of Norwalk greats to have surpassed the 1,000-yard mark in the same season.
Norwalk has scored over 20 points in all seven games, over 30 points four times and over 40 points twice while Gahr is slowing finding its groove after a rocky non-league portion of its schedule.
The Gladiators got past Lynwood High 16-6 last Friday as the halftime score was just 10-0 with senior quarterback Roman Acosta scoring on a seven-yard run in the second quarter and senior Ogadi Metu adding a 12-yard touchdown run in the third quarter.
After the Gladiators beat the Lancers in 2004 and 2005, the two have split the last two meetings, both while members of the Mid-Cities League with Gahr winning in 2022 26-6 and Norwalk returning the favor last season, 43-35.
Prediction: Norwalk 49, Gahr 21
Last week’s prediction: 4-0
Season to date: 28-18
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