Lincoln girls quickly hitting new heights

Lincoln girls volleyball coach Vince Tang had a feeling this could be a record-setting year for the Mustangs.

But hosting the championship match in NorCals? One win away from playing for a state title in Southern California?

“No, probably not,” Tang said Wednesday night.

But after a stunning 16-25, 25-20, 25-22, 25-22 win at previously unbeaten and top-seeded Santa Catalina-Monterey (27-1) in the CIF Northern California Division 3 semifinals Tuesday night, fourth-seeded Lincoln (35-8) is one win from playing for a state crown.

Considering no San Francisco Section girls volleyball team had won even a NorCal playoff match before this year, this is, indeed, uncharted territory.

Sure, the new CIF playoff competitive-equity format, placing all the highest-ranked teams in the highest divisions, certainly has helped Lincoln’s cause.

None of it has taken away from the landmark season. Lana Radakovic, a 6-foot-2 middle blocker, had 25 kills Tuesday for the Mustangs, according to the Monterey Herald (Tang doesn’t keep stats).

First-team All-Academic Athletic League performers, setter Caitlyn Chin, outside hitter Sara Blumenfeld and right-side hitter Jasmine Yun also played strong matches.

Lincoln hosts 11th-seeded Sonora (27-8) at 6 p.m. Saturday for the NorCal championship.

“Everyone is excited, I’m excited, to reach this new territory for our program, for our league,” said Tang, a 2005 Lincoln graduate and ninth-year head coach. “My phone blew up after the match. I heard from administrators, coaches, friends. The girls were so happy and proud. They earned it.”

Making the spot in the final more remarkable is that Lincoln didn’t even win the AAA title this season. It lost a painful five-game match to Lowell in the section championship after sweeping the Cardinals in league play. Lowell also set a section mark with a first-round NorCal win in Division 2 play, before losing to Carlmont-Belmont.

“We felt we let the (section) title slip away, but I told the girls if we get to the state tournament, we have a chance to go far,” Tang said. “I didn’t think this far.”

After three-game sweeps over Drake-San Anselmo and Christian Brothers-Sacramento, Lincoln made the three-hour trip to Monterey on Tuesday and promptly fell behind 10-0 in the first game. Tang called timeout.

Santa Catalina “had a really good, confident team and they had a big crowd backing them hard,” Tang said. “I just told our girls to relax and find our rhythm. Once we started trading points, I knew we’d be OK.”

It helped to have Radakovic pounding away in the middle. Considered one of the best middles in Northern California, Radakovic has committed to UC Davis, Tang said.

“Simply, she was dominant,” he said. “I think she had two hitting errors all night. They couldn’t stop her. And the rest of the girls played great.”

Though Lincoln’s spot in the final is surprising, another San Francisco squad must feel like it’s back home. Sacred Heart Cathedral, the sixth seed, reached the Division 1 final following a 25-18, 25-21, 25-16 home win over Branson-Ross.

The Irish (25-12) travel to top-seeded James Logan-Union City (39-4) in Saturday’s championship. SHC, under longtime coach Margi Beima, has won five NorCal titles, winning a state crown in 2014. All those were at the D3 level.