Huntington Beach girls volleyball coach recaps undefeated season
HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. — Last fall, the Girls Varsity Volleyball team at Huntington Beach High School (HBHS) had a very successful season. The Oilers were undefeated — becoming league champions — and fought their way through CIF to secure a spot in the Division 2 Finals.聽
Right before the 2022 fall season began, I met up with Coach Pazanti to find out how the team has been preparing and what they have been focusing on to ensure a successful season.
鈥淚 expect us to have the same grind as last year,鈥� Pazanti says, 鈥淚t has been our goal to get 1% better every day and play every point as hard as we can.鈥� Over the summer, it definitely worked for the Oilers. Along with their weekly practices, they placed first in the Oxnard Invitational and managed to take home some hardware. Coach Pazanti credits some of the success to the encouraging, family-like culture his young team has created. 鈥淔rom player 1 to player 16, they were able to create an environment that everyone wanted to be involved in,鈥� says Coach Pazanti, 鈥渨e became a family, and the girls not only had fun on the court but managed to be successful on the court as well.鈥�
Coach Pazanti played all of his four years at Huntington Beach High School back in 1986. After graduation, he found a coaching position at the collegiate level before later transitioning to Mater Dei High School in Santa Ana. Soon, he found his way back to the beach and has been head coach for both the girls and the boys volleyball teams, for about 15 years.
Unique to HBHS are the players and their involvement in beach volleyball. Most of the girls play in both and carry over what they learn on the sand to the gym. 鈥淪ome players to watch this season would have to be our returning league MVP Haylee LaFontaine. As a sophomore last year, she was named All-CIF and one of the top 25 players in the state. Dani Sparks is another notable player; she is one of our setters and does an incredible job for us.鈥� Coach continues, 鈥淔inally, Tori Hagan is a four-year starter. She has done a great job leading our young team.鈥�
HBHS鈥� Oiler volleyball players are known for their fighting spirit and 鈥渘ever give up鈥� attitude. In the tournament played earlier this summer, they managed to get ahead early in every match, even against strong teams, which allowed for success. 鈥淓ven though that was just summer,鈥� Pazanti says, 鈥淚 think coming from a young team, those seemed like little wins, and were still very important.鈥澛�
This is an unedited user writing submission. The views, information, or opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Best Version Media or its employees.