Huntington Beach Falls in 5-Set CIF-SS Division 1 Championship Against Mira Costa (2025)

Norwalk – Falcon Gym (Cerritos College)

In a CIF-SS Division 1 boys volleyball between the top two teams in the nation, the No. 2 Huntington Beach boys volleyball team fell to No. 1 Mira Costa 25-19, 22-25, 25-19, 29-31, 15-11 on Friday at Cerritos College.

Grayson Bradford, a UCLA commit, led the Mustangs with 25 kills and nine digs while Mateo Fuerbringer added 17 kills. Alex Heins, an NJIT commit, and Thatcher Fhalbusch, who was committed to Grand Canyon before it dropped it two weeks ago, each had nine kills.

Logan Hutnick led the Oilers with 22 kills and 13 digs while Ben Arguello added 13 kills. Nick Ganier added 12 kills while Colin Choi added nine kills and 10 digs.

Mira Costa led most of the first set, as its tough serving and stellar gameplay from Fuerbringer. The Mustangs also limited Hutnick to only three kills in the first set.

The second set saw the Oilers jump out to a 4-0 lead, which eventually saw balloon to as many as 10. But the Mustangs rallied back to get the lead down to within two at 24-22, only to see Hutnick shut the door on the set with a kill, tying the match at 1-1.

Mira Costa returned the favor as it jumped out to a 4-0 lead and never looked back, as Bradford, who started out with two kills in the first set, was up to 15 through three sets.

Set four was the closest of all of the sets, as Huntington Beach jumped out to an 8-5 lead, only to see the Mustangs tie it at 17-17. Mira Costa led 21-19, but the Oilers knotted the score at 23-23.

After dodging four championship points and needing three set points, Huntington Beach won the fourth set 31-29 off a kill from Choi, as its fans and the team erupted with excitement and relief.

The fifth started out tight with the Oilers leading 5-4, only to see the Mustangs go on a 3-0 to lead 7-5. The lead expanded to 12-7 and eventually 14-7.

Despite dodging three championship points from Mira Costa, Bradford closed the match with a booming kill from the right, clinching its 9th CIF-SS championship in program history. Despite the loss, Huntington Beach was grateful to its fans after the match for making the drive on a Friday.

The Oilers will find out who they will play in the CIF State playoffs on Sunday, as they’ll more than likely be at home to start.