BY ALLAN STEELE
CHINO—When Hemet volleyball players worked out during the summer, there was never a lack of motivation. The Bulldogs had won three straight CIF-SS divisional titles, celebrated with the rings and the banners, and none of the upperclassmen wanted it to end there. The newcomers and underclassmen were reminded every day that the drive for a fourth title was the only goal. Hemet got one step closer to that goal Tuesday. The top-seeded Bulldogs downed Chino Don Lugo 3-0 to move into the Division 4AA finals, arguably playing one of their best defensive matches of the season and again getting the most out of their senior lineup on the way to a 25-13, 26-16, 25-12 win. “Now there’s nothing else in our view but the finals and winning the ring and getting the title for the school,” said senior Baylee Christian, who finished with 18 kills and was a force on the left side. “That’s the only thing we can see right now.” The drive for a fourth consecutive title began in the summer and it hasn’t slowed. “From that first day of summer we just point at those banners and say ‘That’s our goal, we’re going for another one,’ ” coach Janie Washburn said. “For us to finally get here, it feels really good.” The Bulldogs will enter the finals at Cerritos College (either Friday or Saturday) with a 21-1 record. In the quarterfinal match the Bulldogs came out sluggish, but that wasn’t the case on Tuesday. Hemet jumped out to a 14-3 lead in the first set, forcing Don Lugo (13-9) to call timeouts to get settled. The Conquistadores did put together a 5-0 run late, but they were too far down to really challenge. Don Lugo did challenge in the second set, overcoming another early deficit to pull within 12-9 and get the home crowd involved and chanting. A cross-court kill by Christian quieted the fans and the Bulldogs pulled away, closing it out on a strong service game from Hanna Ellington. The third set was all Bulldogs as they built a 15-6 advantage on an ace by Savannah Nixon. “We’re all just going as hard as we can to get the ring,” said Christian, who is going for her third title after missing her sophomore season because of knee surgery. Washburn said there was a bit of relief to finally reach the finals after all the buildup and preparation. “We attacked really well and we put a really tough serve on them and we picked up anything that needed to be picked up,” Washburn said of the team’s effort on Tuesday. Mallory Marcus finished with nine kills and Jessica Brown added six. Taylor Van-Zee led with 16 digs and setter Tristan Self, who will be playing for her fourth championship, totaled 30 assists and 14 digs. Follow Allan Steele on Twitter at @asteele12000