Sophomore Nate Biron named league MVP after excelling for Pirates team that went undefeated against Mountain foes
After a season in which it finished the season 22-4, going undefeated in the Mountain League, and winning CIF Central Section Division II before losing in the California state semifinals, the Santa Ynez Pirates boys volleyball team saw numerous members selected All-Mountain League by the coaches, SYHS volleyball coach Chip Fenenga announced recently.
Sophomore right-side hitter Nate Biron was named the Mountain League MVP. He led the Pirates with 343 kills, 54 aces, and was the top passer on the team. Biron finished, according to the Max Preps website, as the fifth-most efficient hitter in the United States.
“Nate could do it all and was such a hammer from the right side for us this year,” Fenenga said. “He is competitive, athletic, and able to play multiple positions.“
All-League first-team awards went to senior Ben Stuerman, senior setter Manny Sanchez and sophomore outside hitter sophomore Anders Dietenhofer.
“Manny was the setter for this team and performed at an elite level all season,” Fenenga said. “He had almost 900 assists this year and was a team leader and captain.”
Deitenhofer was especially efficient and powerful as a hitter with 266 kills, 42 aces, and 227 digs. “At the end of the season, no one was hitting at his level and range,” the coach said.
Ben Stuerman was the senior team captain and physically the most dominant player for the Pirates leading the team in blocks with 28, while adding 300 kills. “Ben was asked to move from his middle position to outside and teams had so much trouble matching up to his strength, his block and effective hitting,” Fenenga said. “He also was one of Max Preps top 50 in the nation.”
All-league second-team recognition went to middles Jadon Bailey and Wyatt Minus. Wyatt primarily was a blocking force, at the net matched up against opponents top middles. He hit efficiently and was second on the team with 22 solo stuff blocks. Bailey had 115 kills and 18 stuff blocks. “Both of these athletes were forces in the middle that opponents had to honor,” according to Fenenga.
Pirates defensive specialist libero Will Losson was also selected to the second team. He led the Pirates with 256 digs and was the most effective server for the Pirates including a key run at Arroyo Grande in the fifth set of a regular season match with the Pirates down 13-10. Losson served an ace and the next four points for the win. Losson also gave the Pirates a 14-10 lead in the fifth set of the teams’ CIF Central Section second-round game 5 win, after being tied at 10-10.
Honorable Mention went to senior Griffin Bruner. He had 229 serves along with 12 aces and 68 digs. “Griffin was a key part of our run as a talented athlete, returning to play volleyball his senior year,” Fenenga said. “His impact as a server and defensive specialist was vital to our success. He is fast, smart and aggressive. He had some remarkable digs that sparked us against league rivals San Luis Obispo and Arroyo Grande.”
