Estancia captures season series

COSTA MESA — In years past, Estancia High’s victory over Costa Mesa would have constituted a 2-0 sweep of the girls’ volleyball season series.

But this year, because of the oddity of the Orange Coast League being only four teams, the two will match up for a third time.

The third match has left crosstown rivals and potential sweeper, Estancia, and sweep victim, Costa Mesa, with opposing opinions.

The Eagles (17-8, 4-2 in league) won Monday’s match handily at Costa Mesa, 25-11, 25-16, 25-17. But with the final two games undecided until late, Estancia Coach Jim Huffman said a third match will present some problems unseen in the first two.

“It’s hard to keep teams motivated against the same team,” said Huffman, who is in his fourth year. “It used to be teams hated each other and those two matches were great. Now, we all know we’re going to play again.”

Estancia senior Stacie Watson, who had 19 assists and eight digs in the match, has been engulfed in her share of battles with Costa Mesa (2-5 in league).

Watson said beating a team three times in one season presents a unique task.

“It’s weird playing them three times,” Watson said. “It’s tough to beat a team three consecutive times.”

The Eagles will actually go for their fifth consecutive win over the Mustangs in the final match of the regular season Nov. 1. Costa Mesa has not defeated Estancia, or even won a game, since November of 2004, when the Mustangs clinched their second playoff berth in three years.

Costa Mesa senior Danielle Morton, who had eight solo blocks Monday, was on that team. She said the current Mustangs are motivated by another shot at the Eagles.

“It’s weird playing them three matches,” Morton said. “We can beat them, we just have to keep it up.”

Costa Mesa Coach Casey Peterson said the extra match against the Eagles will help motivate the Mustangs through the season.

“I said to the girls that we can see if we can get a different result against the same team,” Peterson said.

Monday, senior middle blocker Jaye Hellmich, who was playing with a broken finger on her non-hitting hand, and sophomore outside hitter Annie Tomasek, with nine kills, proved to be too much for the Mustangs.

“She’s leading the team in kills,” Huffman said of Tomasek.

While Estancia won all three games by a substantial margin, the second two were competitive until late. Down, 9-1, in the second game, the Mustangs outscored the Eagles, 11-6, to cut the lead to 15-12.

“The scores don’t tell you the whole match,” Huffman said. “For the most of the match they played us tough. They’re a young team and they are definitely on the rise.”

Peterson said Costa Mesa, which starts three sophomores, suffered a letdown after sweeping Calvary Chapel Friday for the second time this season.

“We’re usually pretty consistent,” Peterson said. “We never get too low or too high, but today we never got close to our best.”

Peterson said it was Morton’s leadership that got the Mustangs to bounce back from tough stretches, including falling behind, 7-1, in the third game.

With a 4-0 record against Calvary Chapel and Costa Mesa, and one match against each left, Estancia has a firm hold on the league’s second and final guaranteed berth in the CIF Southern Section Division II playoffs.