Kelseyville boys volleyball team travels to Alhambra for Division 4 opener
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KELSEYVILLE >> The Kelseyville Knights might have been better off had they not been the top seed out of the North Central League I.
While Kelseyville (16-10) and Roseland University Prep finished as league co-champions for the second year in a row, and the Knights earned the league’s top seed for the North Coast Section Division 4 boys volleyball playoffs that begin Tuesday, they’ll be opening on the road while RUP (11-3) hosts Quarry Lane (14-15) in another first-round match.
Though designated league champions are generally guaranteed a first-round home match, that rule doesn’t apply when a team is paired with another higher-seeded league champion, which is the case with the 11th-seeded Knights going up Diablo Valley champion Alhambra High School (12-9), the No. 6 seed. They’ll play 7 p.m. Tuesday at Alhambra High School.
RUP came away with the eighth seed. A third NCL I team, Technology (11-11), qualified as an at-large team and drew the No. 15 seed.
Kelseyville and RUP split their two league matches this year, Kelseyville sweeping RUP in their first meeting and losing in five sets in the rematch.
If the Knights can pull off the upset against Alhambra and win the school’s first ever sectional playoff match in boys volleyball, they’ll face the winner of a first-round match between No. 3 Cardinal Newman (9-10) and No. 14 Archie Williams (9-20) in the quarterfinals on Thursday at the home site of the highest surviving seed.
The RUP-Quarry Lane winner travels to No. 1 seed North Hills Christian (18-10) of Vallejo in Thursday’s quarterfinals. North Hills Christian has a first-round bye.
Other first-round matches have No. 4 Terra Linda hosting No. 13 Stuart Hall, No. 5 Windsor hosting No. 12 Benicia, No. 2 Berean Christian hosting Technology, No. 7 Bethel hosting No. 10 Swett, and Cardinal Newman hosting Archie Williams.
Semifinal-round matches are Tuesday, May 13 and the Division 4 championship is Thursday, May 15.
Kelseyville fell in three sets to Albany a year ago in first-round sectional action.