Tough, tested Oak Park braces for showdown with Oaks

JANN HENDRY/Acorn Newspapers READY OR NOT—Agoura High defenders, bottom right, Lars Dion-Kindem, Justin Rushing and Quinn Powers get ready to block a kill from Oak Park's Michael Shea, who's already taken flight. The Eagles, 13-1-1 overall, play at Oaks Christian on Tuesday night. Whitney Warren was thinking about how to appropriately describe his team.

Meanwhile, the other three seniors on Oak Park High's boys' volleyball team—Jeff Sakaida, Eric Varney and Derek Hale— were getting restless.

It was team picture day, and they were waiting, impatiently, for a shot with just the four seniors.

"C'mon, Whit!" they shouted in unison, teasing their fellow Eagle.

Warren, smiling, had found the words he was looking for.

"This group of guys tends to have more fun than in past years," the senior setter said before bolting for pictures. "We have a wellbalanced team."

The Eagles, who lost seven seniors from last year's squad that reached the CIF-Southern Section Division III final, are young, but they're also very good.

JANN HENDRY/Acorn Newspapers NICE AND EASY—Eagle senior Whitney Warren puts up a pass for Michael Shea. "I like having a younger team—we're young but experienced," Warren said. "We have fun in practice, but we also work hard."

Ranked third in its division, Oak Park is 13-1-1 heading into Saturday's Viewpoint Tournament. Next Tues., April 21 the Eagles will play at No. 4 Oaks Christian, their chief rival in the Tri-Valley League.

Oak Park's success has surprised head coach Patrick Quinn, who thought his team would be in rebuilding mode.

Quinn said the Eagles' strengths lie in serving and passing—and the emergence of several young players, including freshman libero Bradley Sakaida.

The coach called the younger Sakaida brother the best freshman in the league.

"If you can serve tough, take the other team out of its offense and run a good offense, that's extremely important," Quinn said.

The Eagles' only loss was to Quartz Hill, the No. 1 team in Division III. Oak Park played five matches in the Dos Pueblos Tournament on March 21 before facing off against Quartz Hill.

With no player taller than Jeff Sakaida at 6-foot-2, Oak Park still clobbered Paraclete, which boasted six players 6-3 or taller, including 6-11 outside hitter Mike Vankirk.

"His head was over the net," Varney said.

The Eagles defeated Paraclete in a three-game sweep (25-17, 25-15 and 25-18) on April 2.

Oak Park also has impressive wins against Moorpark, Agoura, Granada Hills, Chaminade and Crespi.

"I think our chemistry is really good," said Varney, an outside hitter and co-captain with Jeff Sakaida. "We know each other really well. When one person's blocking, we know where to be, whether it's to take the line or angle or fill a hole and block."

Sakaida put it succinctly.

"We just play smarter than other teams," the outside hitter said.

Quinn said only time will tell if the Eagles, who have reached the CIF finals twice in the past three years, will continue their winning ways.

"Hopefully, we'll keep it going," the coach said while watching the junior varsity team practice.

"In the next couple weeks we'll find out whether we'll be 20-1 or suffer a few setbacks. We'll see. We've got to keep working."

But it's not all work and no play. Quinn's players enjoy many lighthearted moments at practice, and despite any shortcomings they might have, they maintain a common goal.

"All teams are different, but they all have similarities," the third-year head coach said. "The challenge, especially at the high school level, is to get everyone to work hard as a group. There's always an individual who works hard. Sometimes I'll get a team that just wants to have fun, and that's okay, too.

"This group wants to do well. They want to win league and go far in CIF. That requires a certain amount of dedication. If they want it, it's my job to push them."