Laguna Blanca wasn’t a very gracious host on Saturday, dominating the field of its own girls volleyball tournament without losing a game en route to downing Division III-A third-ranked Viewpoint in the title match, 25-17.
Senior Jackie Harvey earned MVP honors after crushing balls from the left side all day long, while her younger sister Amanda ran the No. 4 Owls’ offense at setter.
“This is absolutely a nice surprise for us to be playing this well early in the season,” said head coach Jim Alzina. “We’re missing three kids who normally get some playing time for us, but the team really gelled all day today.”
He also cited the play of Heidi Vandenoever.
Laguna defeated Carpinteria in its first match of the day in pool play. The Warriors bounced back by sweeping through Santa Clarita Chrsitian and Sierra Canyon before being eliminated by Brethren Christian in the first round of the playoffs, 25-17.
“We started off okay but we definitely struggled throughout the day,” said coach Katie Dolge. “We were looking scared when we didn’t have to be.”
Dolge said that libero Yadira Saldana’s 24 digs on the day were a bright spot, as were Kelci Jones’ 26 total kills. Megan McMahon was also solid at the opposite hitter position.
Cate and Bishop Diego also played in the tournament but their results have not yet been reported. The Owls play at Santa Clara on Wednesday while Carpinteria is at Nordhoff on Tuesday.
