Girls Volleyball:

Arcadia’s Stephen Bernabe is beginning to see the fruits of his labor.

The Apaches second-year coach has witnessed his program run the roller coaster of emotions and results.

But through the best and worst of times, Bernabe’s message has been the same, and that’s to work your butt off and do things the right way.

Arcadia finished second in the Pacific League to undefeated Burroughs, but they saved their best for last.

The Apaches opened the CIF-SS Division 4 playoffs with a five-set victory at fifth-seeded Whittier Christian.

Two nights later, Arcadia won another five-game thriller over Walnut, who entered the showdown with 31 wins.

Oaks Christian would end Arcadia’s season in the quarterfinal round, but not before Bernabe and his program made it clear that they expect to battle year in and year out for the Pacific League’s top spot.

And for his work and results, Bernabe earned the Pacific League’s Coach of the Year  honors.

Burroughs’ Meghan Lynch Charlotte Hobson  were named the Pacific League’s co-Players of the Year.

Arcadia’s Chayse Hoon and Olivia Ip earned first-team recognition.

We asked Bernabe to answer the following:

1) Can you sort of go into the ups and downs of the season?.
2) Why/how were you able to turn it around?
3) After it was all said and done, was there a moment that most stands out?
4) Lastly, what do you hope this season serves as in terms of this/your program going forward? A raised bar of expectations?

Said Stephen Bernabe:
1) “We had a rollercoaster ride for a season. We played two very good teams and started the season 0-2. There were mini rumblings from coaches not in my program trying to influence/distract my kids, and I know some families were not happy with the 0-2 start. Once I caught onto this, I tried to make sure I set up a phrase that would help my girls focus, and that became “we need to only focus on what happens with our side of the court.” Our defining moment came when we played rivals Crescenta Valley, and we overcame a 6-14 deficit to win the game at 18-16. Our other low moment was going 2 wins and 6 losses in the Crescenta Valley tournament. By this point, it was a reality check with which kids could handle varsity and which ones could not. In the last part of our season before the playoffs, we went 3 wins and 5 losses. The final high points of the season came with us, upsetting the first 2 rounds of playoffs in 5 sets.

2) I was able to turn it around because I had enough girls who were willing to go all-in with me. We do not have the tallest talent, but I am fortunate to have just enough girls who will believe in me and what we as a program are trying to accomplish. These girls played the most significant part in turning things around. We started to practice harder, added film and video delay technology, and then completely changed our lineup options. It was a major sacrifice for girls who played every moment in the game to maybe just a few rotations. These young ladies did what was best for the team, and they should be very proud that we accomplished a quarter-final finish. I am also very thankful for Arcadia’s basketball coaches and school staff because they guided me and shared their knowledge when I was stressed.

3) The biggest moment had to be us beating Crescenta Valley when we were down 6-14. I have never coached a team that was down that much and came back to win it.

4) I hope what this season does is announce to everyone in the community that we are the real deal. We are very young, and moving forward, we strive to be the best program in the area. This year’s group set the bar high, and I hope future players want to come into Arcadia and continue the great tradition of Arcadia being one of the top volleyball programs. This is a program where we want to push for championships and have fun playing the sport of volleyball.”

Coach of the Year:
Stephen Bernabe (Arcadia)

Co-Players of the Year:
Meghan Lynch Charlotte Hobson (Burroughs)

First Team All-League:
Bella Lomet (Burroughs)
Heidi Collins (Burroughs)
Gabriella Damroze (Burbank)
Sofia Morris (CV)
Aleina Manaois (Glendale)
Olivia Ip (Arcadia)
Chayse Hoon (Arcadia)

Second Team All-League:
Janessa Wareebor (Burroughs)
Tawnie Ohrt (Burroughs)
Madison Gomez (Burbank)
Ashley Lineses (CV)
McKenna Keil (CV)
Sarah Vance (Pasadena)
Aleh Tahmasyan (Hoover)

Honorable Mention:
Kara Aldana-Pere (Burroughs)
Makayla Kim (Burbank)
Nyra Tatoulian (CV)
Arianna Vargas (Glendale)
Olivia Hodges (Pasadena)
Cathy Shin (Arcadia)
Keyliyah Johnston (Muir)

Pacific League Standings:
Burroughs (17-5, 13-0)
PHS (16-14, 9-4)
Arcadia (13-16, 9-4)
CV (22-19, 7-6)
Glendale (10-10, 6-7)
Burbank (11-19, 5-8)
Muir (3-11, 2-11)
Hoover (3-25, 1-12)