The wait is over.
Dos Pueblos and Santa Barbara, the last two CIF Division 1 girls volleyball champions, square off Thursday in their first Channel League meeting at Santa Barbara’s J.R. Richards Gym.
A word of advice, get there early for a good seat. The match is scheduled to start at 6 p.m.
The players have been looking forward to this match since they last played in October of last year.
Dos Pueblos won both meetings last year en route to its first CIF championship. In 2008, the Chargers swept the two league matches, but they were upended by the Dons in the 1-A final before 3,000 fans at UCSB’s Rob Gym.
Both programs have sent several players to Division 1 colleges over the past few years, and there’s no shortage of future college talent on this year’s squads. Santa Barbara senior outside hitter Eve Ettinger already has committed to USC.
The teams enter the match battle tested. They’ve played in tournaments, where they’ve gone up against some of the best teams state and the country.
The Dons (12-6, 2-0) last week played in the prestigious 48-team Durango Invitational in Las Vegas, where they finished 14th.
Both teams played at the Archbishop Mitty Tournament, where Santa Barbara finished third and Dos Pueblos (6-2, 1-0) sixth.
Come on, Dons!