DIVISION I VOLLEYBALL: Longhorns roll into state final

Legacy’s boys volleyball team wasn’t going to let anyone get in the way of its year-long goal of a state final appearance.

The Longhorns were fired up from the opening serve to the final point Tuesday, as they quickly spiked any hope Valley had.

“In our best wins this season, we came out really inspired,” Legacy coach Ray Lewis said. “We came out, we had fun and we played hard in that first set today. The score didn’t matter to us at that point. It was just about coming out and showing that we wanted it.”

Senior Tanner Compton put down 20 kills to lead the host Longhorns to a 25-9, 25-23, 25-22 sweep of the Vikings in a Division I state semifinal. Legacy (27-3) will host Sunrise Region champion Las Vegas (21-5) at 7 p.m. Wednesday in the title match.

“It’s something we’ve talked about in our gym all year,” Lewis said. “Since the beginning of the year, we talked about being in the state championship match and every day we’ve just prepared for that. They’ve cheered, they’ve worked hard and they’ve done everything to be successful.”

Trent Compton and Tanner Compton opened the first set with back-to-back kills to give the Longhorns a 2-0 lead. After Legacy extended the lead to 8-2, Valley coach Matt Porter called his first timeout. It didn’t exactly work out the way he envisioned.

Just minutes later, Porter called another timeout after the score moved to 17-7. The Vikings scored only two more points before Tanner Compton’s monster spike ended the set.

“We came out so flat, and they just kept getting momentum and confidence,” Porter said. “They put a lot of pressure on us early, and it took us a while before we got some rhythm. They were just building more and more confidence.”

Legacy’s heavy attack continued in the second set as the Longhorns built an early 8-1 lead. This time, though, Valley fought its way back to a 20-20 tie.

After a Valley serving error, Tanner Compton recorded three kills, and Zaire Franklin put down the set-winning kill.

“Tanner really stepped up,” Lewis said. “He just came out firing from the get-go. He shut them down offensively, and he did a great job.”

In the third set, Legacy overcame a 9-4 deficit to defeat the Vikings.

Trent Compton had 13 kills and three digs, and Braden Liu recorded 40 assists and seven digs for the Longhorns, who haven’t lost a match since March 22 against Escondido (Calif.) in the La Jolla (Calif.) Invitational.

“After the match, I told them, ‘Guys, we have to play one more,” Lewis said. “Go out there and play one more good match of volleyball and we’ll have a state championship.’ ”

A win would give Legacy its first state championship in school history. The Longhorns defeated Las Vegas 3-1 earlier this season.

Valley’s Jack Heavey had nine kills and four digs, and teammate Matt Ballaro added nine kills and two aces. David Delaney recorded 10 digs, and Alex Sandoval dished out 18 assists for the Vikings (18-9), who will lose 10 seniors to graduation.

“They know how much I appreciate and admire them after everything they’ve accomplished,” Porter said. “Somebody had to lose in this situation. We’re proud of what our boys were able to accomplish. It’s been a really special group.”

Las Vegas 3, Shadow Ridge 1 – Chris Kampshoff had 21 kills, 16 digs and two aces to help the Wildcats rally for a 24-26, 25-19, 25-18, 25-19 win over the Mustangs (13-7).

T.J. Esporas added 13 kills and 17 digs for Las Vegas. Shayne Marquez recorded 52 assists and 17 digs for the Wildcats, who will be looking for their first state championship since 2008 and third overall.

Shadow Ridge’s Quinn Peterson had 20 kills, and Carter Johnson added seven kills and two blocks. Nathan Makaiwi dished out 37 assists, and A.J. Makaiwi had 22 digs for the Mustangs.