Long Beach Poly’s Cika Malaga, left, sets the ball in front of her sister Cheeky Talaga in action against San Marcos in the CIF-SS Division 2 girls volleyball quarterfinals on Wednesday, Oct.. 29, 2025, at Long Beach Poly High School. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)
Long Beach Poly junior outside hitter Aleeya Salima goes climbs the net against San Marcos in the CIF-SS Division 2 girls volleyball quarterfinals on Wednesday, Oct.. 29, 2025, at Long Beach Poly High School. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)
Long Beach Poly junior outside hitter Cika Talaga goes up for a hit against San Marcos in the CIF-SS Division 2 girls volleyball quarterfinals on Wednesday, Oct.. 29, 2025, at Long Beach Poly High School. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)
Long Beach Poly junior McKenna Iamaleava follows through on a hit against San Marcos in the CIF-SS Division 2 girls volleyball quarterfinals on Wednesday, Oct.. 29, 2025, at Long Beach Poly High School. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer
Long Beach Poly outside hitter Aleeya Salima goes up for a hit against San Marcos in the CIF-SS Division 2 girls volleyball quarterfinals on Wednesday, Oct.. 29, 2025, at Long Beach Poly High School. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)
Long Beach Poly junior McKenna Iamaleava and her teammates celebrate after sweeping San Marcos in the CIF-SS Division 2 girls volleyball quarterfinals on Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2025, at Long Beach Poly High School. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)
Long Beach Poly’s McKenna Iamaleava, center, and her teammates celebrate after a point in their three set sweep over San Marcos in the CIF-SS Division 2 girls volleyball quarterfinals on Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2025, at Long Beach Poly High School. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)
Long Beach Poly head coach Gerald Aquiningoc huddles with his players during a timeout in action against San Marcos in the CIF-SS Division 2 girls volleyball quarterfinals on Wednesday, Oct.. 29, 2025, at Long Beach Poly High School. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)
Long Beach Poly players had plenty to celebrate during their three set win over San Marcos in the CIF-SS Division 2 girls volleyball quarterfinals on Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2025, at Long Beach Poly High School. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)
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Long Beach Poly’s Cika Malaga, left, sets the ball in front of her sister Cheeky Talaga in action against San Marcos in the CIF-SS Division 2 girls volleyball quarterfinals on Wednesday, Oct.. 29, 2025, at Long Beach Poly High School. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)
LONG BEACH — A raucous crowd grew louder and louder with each Long Beach Poly service ace that found a piece of the floor Wednesday night.
The Jackrabbits’ girls volleyball team also fed off the momentum with each long rally that went its way, chest bumping and playfully pushing each player who kept the momentum going on any given point.
Poly recorded 18 aces and held off San Marcos in a hotly contested second set en route to a sweep, 25-17, 28-26, 25-11, in the CIF Southern Section Division 2 quarterfinals.
“It’s crazy, I love it,” Jackrabbits libero Cheeky Talaga said of the atmosphere after finishing with six aces to pace the team. “It’s so intense. The fans help us build momentum to try and keep going.”
Poly (28-9) will be at Santa Margarita (22-10) on Saturday for the semifinals. First serve is scheduled for 6 p.m.
From the outset, Talaga and the Jackrabbits controlled the action from the service line with three of her aces in succession to go up 4-1 early.
San Marcos (28-7), an all-senior team from Santa Barbara, battled back to take a 12-7 advantage before the Jackrabbits reeled off nine consecutive points to seize control for good in the opening set.
Poly got three more aces in the frame, including two from setter Lauren Foster and set point from fellow setter Hannah Ballungay.
The last of Long Beach Poly’s six service aces seals a 25-17 win in the opening set. Helluva atmosphere in here to start. @johnwdavis @BeachVarsity pic.twitter.com/OP6Hc0hIrF
— Tracy McDannald 📎 (@Tracy_McDannald) October 30, 2025
Jackrabbits coach Gerald Aquiningoc said the strong serve was particularly important against a team with a clear size advantage at the net.
“Especially with a team that big, anything in system and they’re close to the net, they’re hitting over our block,” Aquiningoc said.
San Marcos coach Erica Downing credited Poly for an atmosphere that reminded her of her collegiate playing days for UC Santa Barbara and trips to Hawaii for Big West Conference matches.
“That environment reminded me exactly of going to Hawaii,” Downing said. “They get a lot of excitement and energy from the crowd, and having the home-court advantage is an advantage for a reason. They played well, they deserve it. I hope they can go on and win.”
The Jackrabbits were able to overcome missing two chances to close out the second set while leading 24-21.
The Royals tied it up with three consecutive points, including a block and a kill from outside hitter Charlotte Hastings.
Hastings, who had eight kills to go with a block and an ace over the final two sets, battled through a scary moment earlier in the set. She crashed into the scorer’s table trying to keep a rally alive.
Hastings finished the match but was being checked for a concussion afterward, Downing said.
“She’s a workhorse,” Downing added.
Trailing 25-24, Poly fought off set point with a block from Dayna Lagafuaina and an ace from Keola Aquiningoc.
The teams traded points again before Foster closed the set with another ace to go up 2-0 in the match. She finished with four aces.
Poly had eight aces as a team in the pivotal second set.
“We just couldn’t get them out of their system, at all,” Downing said. “They hit spots where it’s not easy to pass. They’ve got a very flat serve.”
San Marcos had an issue coming out on the better end of long rallies, including one ended by Poly middle blocker Alison Wetteland during a key stretch.
Wetteland’s seven kills trailed only outside hitter McKenna Iamaleava’s 10 for team-high honors.
“Those have been really important to us this season,” Wetteland said. “We’ve really been working on those in practice, just really chasing the ball as much as we can. I think it really does come down to those long plays in games like these, especially when there’s so much energy in the crowd.”
In the final set, the Jackrabbits raced out to a 15-5 lead and never let up.
“We played loose in the third,” Aquiningoc said. “That second set was very crucial.”