Girls’ volleyball gets spiked

Laguna Beach cross country teams run Saturday at CIF finals.A successful 2005 season came to an end Tuesday night for the Laguna Beach High girls’ volleyball team.

Traveling to Los Angeles to take on top-ranked Marymount in a CIF-Southern Section Division I semifinal match, Laguna’s valiant effort fell short in a 22-25, 25-23, 25-22, 15-25 loss to the Sailors.

Pacific Coast League champion Laguna trailed in the first game, 9-5, but eventually battled back to pull into a tie at 21. A blocking error helped Marymount recapture a lead that they would not relinquish.

In the second game, the Breakers got a boost from a large group of fans who made the long trip from Laguna. They took control of the game from the start, as the tough serving of Mychaela Miller forged a 5-0 lead. That lead was extended to 15-9 and stood at 19-14 a third of the way through the second rotation.

With the score tied at 19, a long rally -- which featured four digs on each side -- ended when a Miller dig was spiked over the net by Zoe Garrett. Laguna rode the momentum of that play to win the second game.

In the third game, Laguna held leads of 3-0 and 11-7, but Marymount rallied to tie the match at 17. Laguna then was hit with a series of serve-receive and passing errors that led to 5 quick points for the Sailors.

Marymount jumped out to a 4-1 in the fourth game and slowly pulled away from the Breakers.

Senior Stephanie Darnall finished with 15 kills and nine digs, sophomore Dana Hutchinson 14 kills, eight digs and one block, junior Zoe Garrett 10 kills, eight digs, five blocks and three set assists and Miller, a junior, four kills, seven digs and 32 assists.

In postseason play, the Breakers swept Oxford Academy, Cornelia Connelly and La Reina en route to the semifinal round.

In Saturday’s sweep of La Reina, Darnall had 21 kills and eight digs, Hutchinson 14 kills and 14 digs, Garrett nine kills and 12 digs and Miller 37 set assists.

Laguna ended its season with a record of 24-7. The Breakers won their 14th title in 20 years as a member of the Pacific Coast League.

Laguna reached the semifinal round for the 20th time and owns a 76-29 all-time won-loss record in section playoffs.

In cross-country:

Both the Laguna Beach boys’ and girls’ cross-country teams advanced to run Saturday’s CIF-Southern Section finals at Mount San Antonio College in Walnut.

At the CIF-SS prelims Saturday at Mount SAC, Laguna’s boys won its 13-team heat, the second of three Division IV heats. Laguna’s girls finished fifth in Division IV.

Each team rested two key runners -- the boys, Jeremy Eaton and the girls, Kelly McCarter -- for Saturday’s final.

Laguna’s boys’ are ranked second to No. 1 Orange Lutheran.

At last year’s boys’ CIF final, Orange Lutheran edged Laguna by two points to win the Division IV title. The Breakers returned the favor by defeating the Lancers at last November’s state championships.

“We know each other well, and it should be quite a showdown between us,” Laguna boys’ coach Dave Brobeck said. “Despite having won two state championships, curiously enough, Laguna has never won CIF in cross-country.

“This has been one of my few coaching objectives that I have not yet met.”

The girls’ Division IV race will be run at 8:05 a.m. Saturday. In addition to Laguna, schools qualifying for the division final include Big Bear, Desert Christian/Lancaster, Harvard-Westlake, La Reina, Louisville, Maranatha, Marlborough, Marymount, Morro Bay, Orange Lutheran, Paraclete and Westridge.

The boys’ Division IV race is scheduled for an 8:45 a.m. start Saturday. Competing with Laguna is Big Bear, Bishop Union, Duarte, Fillmore, Malibu, Maranatha, Morro Bay, Notre Dame/Sherman Oaks, Oaks Christian, Orange Lutheran, Paraclete and Whitney.