Playoffs Look Peachy Keen for St. Monica Spikers

Watching spike a volleyball, one would think he's been playing the sport his entire life. He is so explosive in his jump, so fluid in his swing and so accurate in his hitting that even his own teammates are surprised at how easy he makes it look.

A senior at , Peach has only been playing the sport in an organized level since he was a freshman, yet he has risen to an elite level far beyond his experience.

"If he was on a team like Chadwick or Vistamar he would be Player of the Year," St. Monica Coach said of his star outside hitter. "He doesn't have the supporting cast those schools do, yet he's still putting up monster numbers."

At six feet tall, Peach is blessed with a vertical leap over 40 inches that allows him to rise higher than opposing blockers to crack down on the ball. In fact, it'll take all summer to repair the dents in St. Monica's gym floor courtesy of his thunderous kills. 

"I've learned that volleyball isn't all about hitting--although that part is the most fun," said Peach, who hammered a season-best 23 kills March 29 in a four-set home triumph over league rival St. Bernard. "Sometimes during a game I'll notice the other team cheating over and I'll go down the line--which is my favorite play."

Peach has pounded 295 kills in 22 matches played this season, to go along with 72 blocks, 61 digs and 15 service aces. He wears No. 1 on his jersey--appropriate for a team captain who led his team to a perfect 10-0 record in the .

The Mariners (13-8-2) are riding a 12-match winning streak heading into the CIF Southern Section playoffs, where they will host either Capistrano Valley Christian or Hawthorne Math & Science Academy in the first round Tuesday night. St. Monica was ranked eighth in Division 5 in the final regular season Top 10 poll.

"We didn't make the playoffs last year, so I'm really looking forward to it," said Peach, who plans to continue his career at next year and major in civil engineering. "We have the whole team healthy now and I'm hoping our momentum will carry us through."

Born and raised in , Peach is quite well-traveled for his age, having been to London, Paris, Italy, Egypt, Mexico and the Caribbean. He took karate lessons in sixth grade and has been a Boy Scout since first grade. He attended Westchester Lutheran Elementary and Middle School, where he landscaped the middle school lunch area and painted the back of the preschool for his Eagle Scout project with members of Troop 927.

"My freshman year I played varsity at but I never got any playing time and they coach didn't really teach me any of the rotations," said Peach, who has played club for Beach Cities in Torrance since his sophomore year and is now on the 18-and-under team. "I came over here [to St. Monica] and I've improved so much."

Fellow captain , the Mariners' other starting outside hitter, said it's fun playing with a teammate as talented as Peach. The junior brings his ukulele on buses for road matches and he and Peach make music together on the court too.

"What makes Tanner so good? His vert!" said Moynagh, who turns 18 on Thursday. "His hitting ability is incredible. I should know because I've been setting him since my freshman year."

The Mariners appear to firing on all cylinders and Peach knows that every match now could be his very last in high school, so a deep postseason run would be, well, peachy keen.

"We're out too prove that we're better than the [CIF] rankings say," he said. "If we're playing the best we can play, I think we can make at least the semis."