McBride delivers
Senior leads Newbury Park girls' volleyball team to a hard-fought victory over Moorpark
By Thomas Gase tgase@theacorn.com

JANN HENDRY/Acorn Newspapers STATEMENT MADE- Newbury Park's Stephanie McBride, left, goes high to drive home a kill over Moorpark defenders Shannon Thompson, No. 8, and Kaitlin Priebe Tuesday night. With a five-game victory at Moorpark, NPHS improved its Marmonte League record to 5-2. They're 7-6-1 overall.

Fans and experts often say good players play big in the biggest games.

On Tuesday night, in Newbury Park High's important Marmonte League matchup with Moorpark, senior Stephanie McBride established herself as a big-time player.

The senior led her girls' volleyball team with 20 kills as the Panthers outlasted the Musketeers by winning in five games on the road. The win put Newbury Park's record at 5-2 in league.

"Tonight she (McBride) was on fire," Newbury Park head coach Brock Redmond said. "Once she gets in a rhythm like she did tonight, it's tough to stop her."

This year's Panther team has changed considerably since Redmond took over the team last season. In 2005, NPHS finished with a 4-16 record. After winning only four matches again in Redmond's first campaign, the Panthers have changed their losing ways and are now are a legitimate factor in the Marmonte League.

JANN HENDRY/Acorn Newspapers HERE YOU GO- Jackie Russell of Newbury Park sets up a teammate Tuesday night.

"When I took over two years ago this team was terrible, and I basically had to rebuild the program from the bottom up," Redmond said. "I thought my hardest job would be to change the team's mentality and get them to believe in themselves."

Although Redmond admits that McBride is probably the team's best player, he's quick to add that the team plays well only when the entire squad is clicking on all cylinders.

"The way I run our offense, I don't let anyone make too many mistakes," Redmond said. "This is a strong team with a lot of depth, and every girl is good enough to start. I give playing time to whoever is playing well that day. If everyone is playing well, I would put money on my team every night."

Helping McBride contribute for the Panthers are seniors Breanna Kebely, Brittany Huckans, Lauren Rose, Jackie Russell and Jesse Bowden.

Tuesday night against the Musketeers, Bowden registered 10 kills. Other players that continue to be a factor for Newbury Park are juniors Chelcy Westphal and Rachel Smith, along with sophomores Andreya Van Buren and Karissa Flack.

"Our team really meshes well together," McBride said. "We've been rebuilding for a couple years, so to play well in a game like tonight is huge. Tonight our team energy was at a very high level."

The Panthers played especially well in the second and third games against Moorpark, winning 25-20 and 2522 to take a twogamestoone lead. After losing the fourth game 25-22, Redmond gathered his team in a huddle to offer advice for the deciding fifth game.

"He just told us to focus," Smith said. "If we took everything one point at a time, we would be okay."

The Panthers got off to a quick 3-1 start in the fifth game, thanks to a pair of kills by Bowden and one by McBride. With the score at 97 in favor of NPHS, the Panthers went on a 3-0 run with the help of a kill by Van Buren and an ace by Rose.

Newbury Park went up 14-11 when Moorpark missed a serve, and then won 15-11 when the Musketeers were called for double hitting.

"I'm very proud of the way we played tonight," Redmond said. "It was a total team effort tonight, and I thought everyone did a good job of playing within themselves.

"As a team, we've been trying to play with a high level of consistency, and I think we still need to work on that. There would be some times where we would be up six points and then let them come right back in it with some poor play."

Redmond said before the match that another key to his team's success was how well it would serve. Tuesday night the Panthers registered 20 aces, the majority of them coming from Rose and Huckans.

"This is Brittany's first year on varsity, and she has done a great job serving for us," Redmond said. "I don't think she's missed two serves all year. She does a lot of things good on the court, but I believe she has found her role on the team as a great server."

Although the team won against a tough Moorpark team, Redmond said NPHS still has a way to go before it's dominant.

"We're going through the ups and downs of a year like everyone else," Redmond said. "Every win we get- no matter who it's against- builds confidence for this team. If we keep playing consistent, as far as I'm concerned we can play with any team in this league."

Newbury Park continues its quest for a Marmonte League title when it hosts Agoura tonight. Game time is set for 6 p.m.