Beach Cities Make Mark In Volleyball

Several South Bay athletes made their mark in the at the Hermosa Beach Pier last weekend, but one local player made as big an impression as any.

Thirteen-year-old Madeleine Flentie, who will be an eighth-grader at Adams Middle School in neighboring Redondo Beach this fall, didn’t win any medals. But she beamed with pride about competing—and playing—in her first USA Volleyball event.

The about 5-4, 100-pound Flentie and her partner Alyssa Rifalto of Brea came close to advancing to the final round of play in the under-15 division, but were eliminated by the division’s champs, Tiyanna Cooper of Peoria, AZ, and Mia Merino of Tustin, in the third round.

“This is my first big beach tournament, so it’s been a great experience,” Flentie said. “I love playing volleyball. I switched from softball to volleyball because I love it so much. This was fun. It wasn’t like we were here trying to beat everyone. I came here to have fun. I’ve enjoyed every minute of it.”

Susannah Muno of Hermosa Beach and London Chow, who transferred recently to Redondo Union from Palm Springs, were the best of the bunch in the tournament, finishing higher than any of the South Bay teams by capturing a bronze medal in the girls under-17 division.

Another girls under-17 division duo, Skylar Caputo and Lan Nguyen, both of Manhattan Beach, advanced to the quarterfinals before falling to a Florida pair.

Hermosa Beach’s Skyler Morgan and Manhattan Beach’s Samantha Snyder, who will be students at Mira Costa High this fall, advanced to a bronze medal game in the girls under-15 division before falling to a pair of Orange County players.

Redondo’s Tiffany Morales and former Mira Costa star Jace Pardon, who will play next season at Florida State, performed at a high level before being upended in the final round of play last Sunday by an Orange County team.

Mira Costa’s Chris Orenic played well, advancing to the quarterfinals in the boys under-19 division before he and his partner Austin Kingi were eliminated.

Mustangs drop first game, but remain in first place 

Mira Costa lost for the first time in the South Bay Summer Baseball League last week, dropping a 3-2 contest to L.A. Harbor. The setback ended a 10-game winning streak for the Mustangs.

Palos Verdes remained two games back of Mira Costa in the West Division of the league. The Sea Kings recorded a 9-3 win over Gardena to improve to 8-3.

The league playoffs will be held from Thursday, July 28, through Saturday, July 30. The championship game is scheduled for 7 p.m. July 30.