HIGH SCHOOL VOLLEYBALL / Playoffs : Julian’s Effort Not Enough for Fast-Fading Wolverines

Trying to take the middle of the road to the Southern Section Division III championship match, the Harvard-Westlake High boys’ volleyball team found Santa Ynez in its path.

Senior middle blocker Trevor Julian had 39 kills and 14 blocks for Harvard-Westlake, but the Wolverines fell to the two-time defending champion Pirates, 14-16, 15-11, 15-13, 15-8, in a semifinal match Wednesday night at Brentwood High.

Besides the big effort by Julian, who converted 39 of 79 kill attempts and recorded three aces, the Wolverines (14-5) got 11 kills and seven digs from outside hitter Jon Katz and eight kills by sophomore middle blocker Bill Strickland. David Krakow had three aces.

None of that was enough to overcome the Pirates (20-1), who rallied after the first game behind 6-foot-4 senior Mike Wall and 6-5 junior Larry Witt.

Both play in the middle and outside, and they beat the Wolverines from both spots.

Wall, who is headed to Brigham Young on scholarship, had a team-high 14 kills in 38 attempts to go with four blocks. Witt had 10 kills and six blocks.