Mira Costa boys’ volleyball defeats rival Loyola in thriller
The CIF championship wasn’t on the line, but it might as well have been Friday night in the annual men’s volleyball showdown between Mira Costa and Loyola.
Showing why they entered their grudge match in Manhattan Beach ranked No. 1 and No. 2 in the country, two of the Southland’s most storied programs battled for five scintillating sets as the host Mustangs rallied for an 18-25, 26-28, 25-22, 25-22, 15-11 victory in an instant classic that lasted more than two and a half hours.
Leading the comeback was junior outside hitter Mateo Fuerbringer, who finished with 37 kills, five blocks and three aces. Considered the top recruit in the country, he committed to UCLA in December.
“They came out hot and we didn’t play our best,” said Fuerbringer, whose sister Charlie was a setter for Mira Costa and just finished her sophomore season at Wisconsin, leading the Badgers to the Final Four. “We knew if we stayed that way and played the game, we could win it.”
The Mustangs, who won their ninth Southern Section title last spring and went on to win Fresno’s first Division I state title, notched their 15th straight victory and improved to 22-1.
Wyatt Davis, a senior headed to UC Santa Barbara, added 13 kills and seven blocks and senior opposite hitter Enzo Barker had nine kills for top-ranked Mira Costa, who tied the match at two sets on an attack from the right side by Fuerbringer.
“We knew they were a great team,” Davis said of Loyola. “Between the second and third set we made adjustments, guys came off the bench to make key plays, Enzo moved to the outside and we made fewer mistakes in the last set. We wanted it more than them.”
Mira Costa’s only loss came Feb. 21 against Corona del Mar in the Redondo Classic final — a loss the Mustangs avenged four days later. Corona del Mar edged Loyola in the Best of the West semifinals on March 7, but Loyola turned things around against the non-league Sea Kings.
Senior outside hitter and USC signee Blake Fahlbusch led Loyola Friday with 15 kills and four blocks, senior libero and Loyola Chicago commit Matt Kelly was a whirling dervish on defense, slugger JP Wardy contributed 10 kills and opposite Lucas Posell had nine for the No. 2 Cubs (12-2). Fahlbusch’s brother, Thatcher, played for Mira Costa and is now a freshman outside hitter at Hawaii.
Mira Costa swept last year’s nonleague game at Loyola to end a four-game losing streak against the Cubs, who had handed the Mustangs their first loss in the Best of the West final. Mira Costa lost just one more game (to Chicago Marist at the Santa Barbara Tournament of Champions) to finish 37-2 last spring.
The Mustangs are on pace to surpass that win total even after the graduation of Grayson Bradford, now a freshman at UCLA.
“It’s good to have a midfielder like Wyatt [Davis]” said Mira Costa senior setter Jake Newman, who had 55 assists. “Him and Charlie give me great options. It’s a pretty simple concept.
Loyola holds the section record with 13 titles, the last in 2024 when it beat Mira Costa 25-21, 25-22, 25-21, in the final behind 15 kills from Sean Kelly, now at UCLA. The teams have met in the final three times, with Loyola winning in 2005 and 2010 and Mira Costa in 2012.
“We knew we could do it,” Newman added. “We knew at some point we would get that spot where we would play our best. I started watching their blockers to see who was turning to Mateo.”
Coach Greg Snyder, who is in his third season at Mira Costa, wants to lead his team to a repeat but knows it won’t be easy.
“The first two sets we were predictable, we were passing poorly, they took us out of system and hit our swings a lot,” Snyder said. “Mateo played very well but we were too Mateo tonight. We have to lead that middle because we are better than them there.”
Snyder fully expects to see Loyola again this season.
“The gym was packed – there was more build-up than when we played them in the final,” he said. “I thought whoever won tonight should be the No. 1 team in the country and whoever lost should be No. 2.”
