SUNSET VOLLEYBALL: Aggies outlast Palo Verde for first region title

When Arbor View’s boys volleyball team beat Palo Verde in a five-set match March 29, the Aggies figured it would end up being their closest match of the season.

They were wrong.

Treven Clizbe had 26 kills and 23 digs, and Brenden Wagner added 22 kills and 13 digs Friday as Arbor View claimed its first region title by outlasting the Panthers, 19-25, 25-21, 21-25, 25-20, 15-8 in the Division I Sunset Region final at Legacy. Both teams advance to next week’s state tournament.

Arbor View (36-3) faces Foothill (28-11), the Sunrise Region runner-up, at 5 p.m. Tuesday in a state semifinal at Legacy. Palo Verde (29-11) will play Sunrise champ Green Valley (29-7) at 7 p.m. Tuesday in the other semifinal.

“This was our closest match all season,” Arbor View coach John Gibbons said. “I’m just so proud of these kids. They worked really hard all year long. They’re young, but we have some senior leadership. And they all just come together and they fight. That’s the best thing I can say about this team is they fight.”

Palo Verde, the defending state champion, appeared to be more at ease early and took the first set on two consecutive aces by Jacob Scheer.

In the second set, Arbor View overcame 10 ties and benefited from four Palo Verde service errors to even the score.

The teams alternated the next two sets to set up a decisive fifth. It was the Aggies’ sixth fifth-set match of the season.

“I felt really good because we’ve been there a lot,” Gibbons said. “Our kids were finally getting through the jitters from being here. I think midway through the fourth (set), we started playing better.”

In the fifth set, Arbor View grabbed a 7-3 lead to force Palo Verde coach Phil Clarke to call a timeout. But the breather wouldn’t derail the Aggies’ momentum.

Arbor View scored the next two points to take a six-point lead and went on to win the set 15-8.

“We just told our kids to take it point-by-point,” Gibbons said. “And then get back to an even level. That’s been my mantra for a very long time. Just get to the middle. Don’t get too high. Don’t get too low.”

Clizbe and Wagner had four kills apiece in the fifth set.

“I’m just really proud of this group,” Gibbons said. “They’re like brothers. They stick together. They hang out. And they play around like brothers do.”

Michael Prescia had 27 digs and two aces, and Brenden Gougeon had 49 assists, 16 digs, three kills and three blocks for the Aggies. Tyreese Cole added seven kills and three blocks for Arbor View.

Scott Solan led Palo Verde with 10 kills and two blocks. Haden Van Orden had 35 assists and 12 digs, and Jacob Scheer added 17 digs and two aces for the Panthers, who also got eight kills from Grant Tingey.