Tars win volleyball’s Battle of the Bay

CORONA DEL MAR - They sit back and almost dare you to make it

close, giving fans an extra thrill and providing Coach Dan Glenn with an

added panic attack.

Newport Harbor High’s Sailors, showing why they’re the top-ranked

girls volleyball team in CIF Southern Section Division I-AA, did not get

caught up in the moment Friday night in the fifth game when it was tied,

12-12.

Instead, the Tars calmly took charge of the Back Bay rivalry and

defeated host Corona del Mar in a rousing nonleague match, 15-13, 16-18,

15-7, 8-15, 15-12.

“Our kids are pretty good about that,” Glenn said, referring to his

team’s equanimity in crunch time. “They don’t panic when it’s close at

the end. Sometimes I wish they’d panic a little more ... I’m the only one

panicking.”

After getting the serve back in the final game, Newport Harbor senior

Lisa Addeo, a 5-foot-10 middle blocker who finished as one of five

Sailors to reach double figures in kills, administered a block high at

the net to give Glenn’s squad a 13-12 edge.

Newport Harbor, which came from two games down to beat Corona del Mar

on Oct. 23, kept the serve the rest of the game as Erin Haller closed out

the victory.

Duke-bound Krista Dill, a 6-2 middle blocker for the Tars, ripped one

through the middle for a kill on a first-touch return to give the

visitors a 14-12 lead, then Addeo and Taylor Govaars combined to block a

CdM spike attempt and conclude the match.

“We had our opportunities, but I think (the Sailors) had a little more

composure at the end of the fifth game,” CdM Coach Steve Conti said. “I

felt we panicked a little on a couple of plays. But our girls put it all

out on the floor, and that’s what it’s all about. Our girls should be

proud of their efforts. It was a typical Newport-Corona Back Bay

volleyball rivalry.”

Both teams will enter the CIF playoffs next week, and both are

expected to go far in the postseason. CdM (13-5) won the CIF Division

III-AA championship two years ago and reached the semifinals last year.

“They play hard and they should do real well in CIF,” Glenn said of

the Sea Kings. “I’m just glad we don’t have to play them again (this

year). They’re a solid team and they play great defense. I like their

chances of becoming CIF champions.”

Newport Harbor (16-1), coming off last weekend’s triumph at the Santa

Barbara Tournament of Champions, enjoyed great balance in hitting as

April Ross (20 kills), Heather Cullen (14), Addeo (13), Brenda Waterman

(12) and Dill (10) all recorded kills in double digits. Haller added

eight kills, while Addeo had five blocks and Dill three blocks.

CdM, which won an unforgettable second game, 18-16, was led by senior

outside hitter Dimitra Havriluk, who finished with a match-high 32 kills

and 27 digs. Jamie Brownell, also a senior outside hitter, had 24 kills,

24 digs and five service aces, while senior Meghan Gallagher ended with

20 kills and three blocks. Senior Marissa Becker had 19 digs, 14 assists

and two aces.

“I’m real proud of how those four seniors played,” Conti said. “Those

four seniors are the backbone of our team and they’ll be the backbone of

our team in the playoffs.”

Sophomore setter Jacqueline Becker had 61 assists for the Sea Kings,

champions of the Pacific Coast League.

The first game featured five ties, the last one at 13-13, as CdM

hitting errors helped Newport Harbor win. Dill had five kills in that

game.

Havriluk led CdM in the second game with seven kills. The Tars were

serving for the game at 14-13 and 16-15, but CdM rallied both times, then

prevailed.

Newport Harbor built leads in the third game of 8-4 and 14-6 to win

easily, but the Sea Kings tied the match in the fourth game behind

Havriluk, Brownell and Tracy Brown, whose ace gave them a 14-7 lead.

In the fifth, Newport Harbor had a 9-4 advantage, but Corona del Mar

fought back. After Harbor went ahead, 11-9, Havriluk rolled off five

straight kills for CdM, two for points. Harbor’s overall pose, however,

was too much for CdM.