FOR ROYAL, BEATING LOYOLA IS NO. 1 PRIORITY.

Byline: Brian Dalziel Daily News Staff Writer

Cam Dickson's smile told the whole story.

Dickson, Royal High's sensational senior middle blocker, earned most valuable player honors Saturday, helping the Highlanders to a 15-5, 10-15, 15-12 victory over Loyola to capture the Redondo Tournament Gold Division championship at Redondo High.

The 6-foot-4 Dickson finished with 24 kills as the Highlanders rallied in the final game with four straight points to clinch the title.

``Incredible,'' Dickson said. ``I said I wanted a piece of Loyola (Friday) and now I get to have a really big piece. This just builds confidence for us going into the CIF playoffs.

``I think we will see Loyola again (in the finals) and it will be another tough match.''

Royal, the second-ranked team in the Southern Section behind No. 1 Loyola, faced the Cubs in a one-game final of the Dos Pueblos in March, losing 15-6.

Saturday, it was a different story.

``We wanted to win this match badly; more than anything,'' said senior outside hitter Ryan Moberly, who finished with 19 kills to earn all-tournament honors along with teammate Bryan Reinstein.

``That last tournament we didn't play well against Loyola and our passing wasn't good. Tonight, it was all clicking.''

Royal opened the day by beating defending City champion Palisades (15-0, 15-7), then knocked off Peninsula (15-12, 15-13).

The Highlanders kept the momentum going in the semifinals against Mira Costa, ranked No. 9 in Division I, cruising to a 15-3, 15-9 victory and a date with the Cubs in the final.

And the Highlanders didn't let up. Their intensity showed in the opening game as Dickson and Moberly put up the block on Loyola's 6-foot-9 middle blocker Curt Toppel, eventually coming away with a 15-5 victory.

Toppel and senior middle blocker John Beckwith were named to the all-tournament team for Loyola.

Rotation adjustments in the second game helped Loyola even the match. The Cubs, trailing 4-0, rallied to take a 12-5 lead. Royal kept itself in the game, closing within 12-8. The Cubs, though, pushed its margin to 14-10 and tied the match on a Toppel kill.

``We made some switches in the rotation (in the second game) and we were able to stop them a bit on the moves we made,'' said Loyola coach Mike Boehle. ``Then we faltered.''

Leading 12-11 in the final game, the Cubs were called for a net violation, tying the score 12-12. Royal scored three straight and came away with the win.

``We accomplished what we set out to do,'' Royal coach Bob Ferguson said. ``We wanted to win a tournament this year. We came close at Dos Pueblos, but now we have one.''