The Bears still have hopes of claiming at least a share of the Pacific League title



The John Burroughs Bears came away with a sweeping victory over the Glendale Dynamiters on Thursday (25-17, 25-22, 25-13), solidifying their hold on second place.


The Bears are tied for first place in the Pacific League standings with the Arcadia Apaches, but also hold the tie-breaker over Crescenta Valley, who currently sit in third place. The Bears sit in second place by virtue of being swept by the Apaches last Friday.



Noah Duffield began the opening set with the game’s first kill for the Bears, but Skyy Alston’s service out of bounds awarded the point to the Nitros which tied the score at one. Jack Szaras and Riley Brinton scored back-to-back points to put the Bears 4-1. The Bears ultimately pulled away with Alston ending the opening set with an ace.



Riley Brinton and Jeroan De Villa began set two by trading kills for points, which was a sign of what was to come in this set. The Bears did go on a 5-1 scoring run as Brinton, Duffield, and Szaras contributed. The Bears players were out of rotation, ending their run and awarding Glendale the point.


The Dynamiters, down by as much as 10 points in the second set, closed the gap and eventually tied it at 20 when Burroughs was called for having their players out of rotation for the second time in the set. Eli Bugayng, Will Andersn and Gavin Etterbeek combined to help the Bears get the set two win by the final of 25-22.


The Bears took control in the third set to secure the sweep of the Nitros.


Burroughs improves to 16-6 overall and 6-1 in Pacific League play and Glendale falls to 1-8 overall and 1-7 in Pacific League play.


Burroughs will play a doubleheader against Foothill and an opponent that will be determined on the first day of the Santa Barbara Tournament of Champions.



Next week, following the tournament will be a big week for the Bears, as they face Burbank on Tuesday April 14 and then host Crescenta Valley for a crucial match on Thursday April 16. Both of those matches are scheduled for 6:00 p.m.



Glendale returns to action with another Pacific League contest against Pasadena on Tuesday, April 14 at 3:45 p.m.






















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