Newbury Park High’s girls volleyball team delivered a resilient performance in the CIF-Southern Section Division 3 championship, only to fall just short of program history against Corona Del Mar. The Panthers, who overcame significant hurdles to reach the final, faced a dominant offensive display from Corona Del Mar’s star outside hitter, Dajnowiec. She recorded a stunning 36 kills to drive her team to a thrilling five-set victory with scores of 24-26, 25-20, 25-15, 22-25, and 15-13 at Cerritos College on Saturday, Nov. 7. This marks the second time in three seasons that Newbury Park has reached the section title match and emerged as the runner-up.
Dajnowiec’s 36 kills seal victory as Panthers miss historic first section title by a hair
The match reached its peak drama in the decisive fifth set, where Newbury Park held a commanding 10-7 lead, placing them just five points away from their first-ever section championship. However, Dajnowiec seized control of the momentum, manufacturing five kills within an 11-point span to reverse the deficit and secure the win for Corona Del Mar. Newbury Park head coach Chris Forrest acknowledged the disparity in offensive firepower, stating, “That’s a beautiful thing [about Dajnowiec’s performance]. Today, we didn’t have that.” The Panthers’ inability to neutralize the senior attacker proved to be the deciding factor in a high-stakes contest.
Despite the loss, Newbury Park’s core trio demonstrated elite-level production, with Saint Mary’s commit Charley Knupp recording 18 kills and 15 digs, while sophomore outside Emmery Reynolds contributed 10 kills and 10 digs. The effort highlighted the team’s competitive depth and resilience, even as they faced a superior opponent in the final moments. “She is a great attacker. She goes line, she goes hard angle — she can do all the shots,” said Newbury Park opposite Sara Vlaskovits. “You can’t always stop her.” The result underscores the narrow margin of error in high school volleyball’s top tier, leaving Newbury Park with a bitter but instructive experience for future campaigns.
Source: Yahoo Sports
