Hillcrest boys volleyball team once again goes to distance to beat Ramona – Press Enterprise

RIVERSIDE — Earlier this season, during a zero period class, Hillcrest boys volleyball coach Everton Souza gave freshman Evan Eugene an opportunity to get some playing time with his senior laden varsity team.

Souza liked what he saw in that workout and kept Eugene with his team instead of the junior varsity squad.

Thursday, in another high stakes River Valley League championship duel, that decision paid off as Eugene had three kills over the last eight points of the to help Hillcrest to a 23-25, 25-21, 25-21, 21-25, 15-9 victory and a two-game lead in the league standings.

Hillcrest (12-4 overall, 5-0 in league) rallied from two set down to win five sets in the team’s first meeting earlier this month.

“We’ve been slow starters all year long but find ways to win,” Souza said. “Ramona and coach Stephanie Garcia deserve a ton of credit for pushing us as hard as they did in both matches this year. That’s the kind of match which helps both sides going towards the playoffs.”

Ramona (13-4, 3-2) rallied for an opening-set win by taking three of the final four points, which included kills from Eduardo Perez and Charlie Deleon and a combination block by Deleon and Emmanuel Carillo-Garcia.

That late surge also propelled the Rams to a 7-0 lead in the second set. Juan Quiroz, Perez, and Carillo-Garcia combined to record five kills in that spurt. Hillcrest rallied from that early deficit and eventually tied the score at 20 on a kill by Leo Cruz kill. Jacob Lilliard then finished off the comeback with two kills in the last four points to level the match at a set apiece..

Aydan Parks registered four kills down the stretch to help the Trojans take the third set.

Hillcrest used a 5-0 run to take an 8-4 lead in the fourth set. That run included a kill from Eugene, a solo block and kill from Parks, and an ace by Marcus Guzman-Takama. However, Ramona responded with a 7-2 run to take a 15-9 lead. Deleon had two kills, while David Roman had a block and a half in the push. Back-to-back Hillcrest attacking errors sent the match to a fifth set.

Parks started the fifth set with an ace, as Hillcrest raced to a 6-3 lead. Eugene finished his 12-kill effort with three kills over the final four points to help the Trojans prevail.

“I just took advantage of my opportunities down the stretch today,” Eugene said. “We weren’t afraid of that early deficit because we knew we were capable of fighting our way out of it just like the last time we did. That’s something we can take into the playoffs.”

Lilliard led Hillcrest with 17 kills, while Parks added another 14 for the Trojans. Cruz recorded 46 assists, and Larry Kovacs has 26 digs for Hillcrest.

Deleon had 17 kills to lead the way for Ramona, while Quiroz and Eduardo Perez added 13 and 11 kills, respectively, for the Rams.