Hawks’ Pearson named MVP
Mount Madonna School’s boys volleyball team took third place in the Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League this season, but there was little question that the Hawks boasted the top individual talent. Senior Ben Pearson, a fouryear starter for the Hawks, was named Most Valuable Player.
The 6-foot-2 outside hitter averaged more than 30 kills a match for the Hawks (15-15, 5-7), and recorded a school record and league record 54 kills in a five-set loss to league champion Santa Cruz (384, 11-1). The previous mark of 52 was set by Mount Madonna’s Tobias Aguirre in 1994 against Harbor.
“He was nothing short of spectacular this year,” said PK McDonald, the Hawks coach. “He gave us a chance and as key to us being competitive.”
He helped the Hawks qualify for the Central Coast Section Division II playoffs and reach the quarterfinals, where they lost to No. 1 seed Sacred Heart Cathedral 25-21, 25-19, 25-20.
Pearson will play for NCAA Division I UC Santa Barbara next season. The Hawks’ salutatorian, he’ll major in astrophysics.
Given the Hawks’ youth, it didn’t take long for opponents to realize Pearson was the focal point of the attack.
“The secret was out pretty fast,” McDonald said. “He had to change his repertoire to stay effective. He did a good job off the block or taking what the defense gave him.”
As a child, Pearson worked on his attack after his parents set up a net in their Santa Cruz backyard. It wasn’t long before he destroyed everything in sight. It was more of the same on indoor courts in league play, where players took the place of patio furniture.
“He absolutely soared,” Mc
Donald said. “And every hit was with unrelenting power, using his whole body. His swing is really special to watch.”
Harbor’s Ben Meyer was named SCCAL Coach of the Year.
Pearson was Mount Madonna’s lone first-team player. Santa Cruz, Harbor and Aptos each had two players make the first team. Senior setter Leo Tuncer and freshman outside hitter Julian Pally made it for the Cardinals, senior middle blocker Sean Byram and senior libero Owen Levy made it for the Pirates, and senior middle Ethan Weldon and senior outside hitter Nolan Durns made it for the Mariners.
Santa Cruz reached the CCS D-II final, where it lost to No. 5 Leland of San Jose, 25-23, 22-25, 19-25, 25-17, 15-8, and qualified for the CIF NorCal D-III Regional playoffs. The Cardinals were eliminated by eventual champion Homestead, 25-21, 13-25, 25-23, 25-20, in the semifinals.
Harbor (24-10) made the CCS D-II quarterfinals and also lost to the Chargers.