Boys’ volleyball: Conquistadores couldn’t quite close it out

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For a team that was given little chance, El Camino Real sure gave Palisades quite a scare Saturday night in the City Section’s Championship Division final. The second-seeded Dolphins avoided the upset with a five-game victory, but they left the Matadome in Northridge with plenty of respect for their opponents.

‘In terms of their blocking, I’d say that’s definitely the best team we’ve played,’ Palisades’ setter Scott Vegas said. ‘They ran the quick a lot and did some things we’re not used to seeing.’

El Camino Real’s taller front line of senior Scott Wolfson and sophomore brothers Kris and Mikel Du Boise started to assert itself midway through the second game, which the Conquistadores won on a kill by Alton Ina.

Getting a lift from their fans, who spent most of the night chanting ‘Overrated! Overrated!’ in reference to the Dolphins’ seeding, the ninth-seeded Conquistadores proceeded to win the next game and led by as many as eight points in the fourth before Palisades staged a furious comeback to seize back the momentum.

Coming close, though, was no consolation for El Camino Real, which not only wanted to win its first City title but was also trying to extend the West Valley League’s string of nine consecutive City titles.

‘Losing in the finals is the worst feeling ever,’ Kris Du Boise said.

-- Steve Galluzzo