By Ed Piper
Senior Brennan Schmidt and sophomore Adam Grushkevich, the Vikings' number-one pair, went down, 21-10, in their first match of the postseason playoff bracket Thurs., Nov. 2, after finishing second in their pool the day before, thereby ending their season.
Schmidt, the 6'1" senior, has been paired with Grushkevich, a precocious 5'10" setter on La Jolla's varsity indoor court team who started as a freshman. They enjoyed a successful beach season in what many hope is the last pre-CIF-sanctioned version of the popular sport.
"He's quite a leader, too," said Viking head coach Jake Northrup of Adam during the competition.
They were defeated by Stephen Trainor and Lincoln Wirschem of Helix, who won their pool.
Asked about boys beach volleyball moving to official CIF status next season, Northrup said, "They're talking about it" at the postseason playoffs.
Assistant Dave Jones, a campus teacher and coach at La Jolla High who has been a long-time advocate for the sport, has worked for official status. One factor that put boys beach a step behind girls beach volleyball was the NCAA establishing women's beach volleyball as a recognized sport offering athletic scholarships a few years ago. That immediately pushed women's beach volleyball ahead, and it was certified as a CIF sport two years ago.
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