For the first time in Trinity boys’ volleyball history, the Knights are champions of the Heritage League following a four-set win, 25-17, 22-25, 25-11, 25-13, over the Vasquez Mustangs on Monday.
“We fought through a lot of adversity because we had sick players, players out because of schedule reasons, and I had to bring some junior varsity players up,” Trinity head coach Dan Hastings said. “I’ve never seen this type of fought in the five years since I started the program.”
Hastings said he began the boys’ volleyball program at Trinity Classical Academy in 2022 and while the Knights are Heritage League champions for the first time, the team also recorded the most wins in a single season with 23.
Hastings added that this season has been special and that although the Knights clinched their bid into the playoffs in the years past, the program finally got over the hump to win the league title.
“We kept making playoffs, we kept playing good, and we just kept missing the league title,” he said. “So, this is a gigantic milestone for Trinity Classical Academy and for us as team.”
This season, the Knights clinched the league title with a young group as the program has just one graduating senior this season.
Several returning players for the Knights next year ended this season having led the team in stats such as serving aces, assists and kills.
Hastings added that this year’s group has been all about having the youth have their time, with core players in sophomore Zane Solomon and freshman Gabriel Eckhart leading the team.
During the season, junior opposite hitter Matthew TeWinkle broke the school’s single-season record for kills with 369.
“They’re all super devoted to volleyball, which is really big,” Hastings said. “They’re all close friends and the chemistry is as tight on the court as it is off the court.”
Hastings added that it’s been a milestone year for the program and now that the main goal of the season has been achieved, the next target is to win in the California Interscholastic Federation playoffs.
The Knights end the season as winners of their last 19 out of 21 games and Hastings believes all the momentum is on their side as they look to make some noise in the Southern Section and bring home a CIF plaque.
“We’re completely determined and we’ve already been discussing it,” Hastings said on the team’s goals to win in the playoffs. “That was goal No. 1 and goal No. 2 is to see how far we can go in the playoffs and hopefully a championship.”
The Knights now await to see where and who they’ll play in the boys’ volleyball Southern Section playoffs with the brackets set to release on Saturday.
