Eric Van Huizen wanted the match over as quickly as possible
“I don’t like fifth sets because anything can happen,” explained the Langley Christian coach.
Van Huizen — who coaches the junior boys volleyball team alongside Bruce Wergeland — was discussing his team’s four-set victory over Langley Fundamental.
The two junior boys teams were playing on Thursday at the Langley Events Centre.
It was the second straight Langley district title for the Lightning — and Langley Christian and Langley Fundamental have combined to win every title for the past dozen years.
It was Langley Christian’s first junior boys district title since 2013 as Langley Fundamental had won the past two titles.
Combined, the two powerhouse programs have won every Langley district title since 2005.
The Lightning took a commanding lead in the final, winning the first two sets 25-18 and 25-14. But the Titans fought back in a back-and-forth third set, staying alive with a 25-23 win.
Langley Christian closed the match out with a 25-16 win.
“Our goal was to win districts,” Van Huizen said.
The team was 5-0 during league play while the Titans were second at 4-1.
And in the semifinals on Nov. 1, the Lightning beat the Mountain Eagles in straight sets while Langley Fundamental prevailed in four sets over the Credo Christian Kodiaks.
The Kodiaks won the bronze-medal match over Mountain.
Both the Lightning and Titans advance to the Fraser Valley championships, which run Nov. 7 to 10 at Abbotsford’s MEI School.
Langley Christian enters the Valley championships on a bit of a roll, having won both the district title and their own host tournament the weekend before.
Altogether, the team finished in the top three of all the tournaments they entered.
“I think after a bunch of tournaments we have played in this year, we are probably top four Fraser Valley for sure,” Van Huizen said.