Menlo is on a mission Menlo is on a mission (December 06, 2002)

Knights want state title before trip to Disneyland

by Rick Chandler

Well, it's early December, and the Menlo School girls' volleyball team has made a solemn vow: The Knights are going to Disneyland.

You can read two things into that. First, it's a reference to winning the big one -- after three straight losses in the CIF State Championships, the Knights are planning to cast that monkey off their backs and finally take home a state championship trophy. Second, well, they're actually going to Disneyland.

"It's become the standing joke," said Menlo head coach Ryan Cooling, whose team takes on two-time defending state champion Marymount for the Division IV title on Saturday at Cypress College at 11 a.m. "Hey, it's December, Menlo is going to Disneyland. So yeah, we're actually going, win or lose. It's our attempt to have some fun with this and keep it light. But underneath all that is the feeling that we are on a mission; we are very focused on winning this thing."

This will be Menlo's fourth straight trip to the state finals, but the Knights have never won the title. After claiming Central Coast Section and NorCal crowns in 1999, 2000 and 2001, Menlo went south and lost to Notre Dame-Los Angeles, and Marymount twice, respectively. Including this season's 24-6 mark, Menlo's overall record during this four-year span is 119-26, a grand thing to be sure -- but without the ultimate achievement, the Knights consider it somewhat of a hollow record.

"We're like the Buffalo Bills of the State Championships," Cooling said, laughing. "We go there every year but can't win it."

But the Knights think they have found a way to fix that. On Tuesday, Menlo beat Notre Dame-Salinas in three games to claim the NorCal Division IV title, avenging a five-game loss to the Spirits in the CCS title game the previous weekend. That loss ended Menlo's streak at four straight section crowns, serving as a major wakeup call.

"The loss is CCS made our path clear," Cooling said. "We became very focused after that. Our six seniors got together and said that there was no way that they were not going to state. Practices became more intense, and people just stepped up to do what they had to do."

Part of Menlo's problem in CCS had to do with the Courtney Rose factor -- Menlo's senior outside hitter suffered a knee injury in the CCS loss to Notre Dame-Salinas, and missed NorCal wins over Winters and top-seeded Linden. She was cleared to play on Tuesday morning, and returned to the lineup against Notre Dame-Salinas as a back-row specialist and sporting a knee brace.

"Courtney has a torn ACL, and she's going in for surgery on (Dec.) 13th," Cooling said. "The doctor cleared her for back row play, but she has zero lateral movement to the left. Even so, she had 10 digs (in the NorCal win) against Notre Dame-Salinas, and they were big ones, too. She may be hobbled, but it's her heart and experience that are so valuable to us."

Rose's replacement, sophomore Sophie Schmidt, also has been a big factor. After a shaky start in the CCS loss to Notre Dame-Salinas, she stepped up in NorCal play and has been a solid presence. Sophomore Alex Fisher and her junior sister, Kate, also have been huge for the Knights, as have senior middle blockers Mallory Frye and Bayley Dixon. Alex Fisher had 16 kills in the NorCal win over Notre Dame-Salinas (she is back to normal after shoulder problems in the NorCal tournament), Kate Fisher dished 32 assists, Frye put away 10 kills and Dixon eight with four blocks, and Schmidt had five kills.

Marymount, the No. 1 South seed, goes into the match with a 29-4 record.

"They're a great team, but I think we're due," said Cooling, who will be coaching in his seventh State Championship -- he won three state titles with Mitty (in Divisions IV, III and I), in 1993-95.

"I think that part of our problem last year was that we played all of our playoff games (in CCS and NorCal) at home," he said. "We got too comfortable. But after losing in CCS this year, we had to play our NorCal matches on the road. That got us ready to do what we have to do on Saturday, which is to go down there and play our game."

And if that happens, the Knights will find that Disneyland is indeed The Happiest Place on Earth.