Sailors hold off Breakers

LAGUNA BEACH — What was taking shape as a sweep for the Newport Harbor High girls’ volleyball team Tuesday turned into a typical battle with the Laguna Beach Breakers.

The Sailors won the first two games and were on the verge of getting game No. 3. But Laguna rallied to win two straight games before Newport took command at the outset of the decisive fifth game to end up claiming a 26-24, 25-20, 23-25, 20-25, 15-7 nonleague victory at the Laguna gym.

“They’re a really good team and it’s nice to come to their place and get a victory,” Sailors Coach Dan Glenn said. “We had a chance to win that third game but we let them back in. I knew we were in trouble by letting them hang in there, but the girls did a great job of regrouping and controlling that fifth game.”

In that fifth game, the Sailors (8-1), ranked fifth in CIF Southern Section Division I-AA, bolted to a 5-0 lead and never let up. Katey Thompson had a pair of kills, Mary Buckingham had a kill and Thompson and Alice Cope came up with a big block at the net on Laguna’s strong outside hitter, Piper Obradovich, to build that five-point cushion.

Laguna, No. 5 in Division I-A, was never able to get closer than four points the remainder of the game.

“We were able to control things by getting off to such a great start in that fifth game,” Glenn said. “We’re not very good when we play slow, but we’re really good when we play at a fast pace. And we had some speed in that fifth game.”

Laguna actually looked like it would take the first game after grabbing a 23-19 lead on a kill by junior outside hitter Paulette Grand Pre. The Breakers also stood at game point, but couldn’t close the game. A net violation by the Breakers enabled the Sailors to pull even at 24 and when Buckingham sent a kill off the right hand of Laguna’s Hayley Wyett, Newport had the lead at 25-24, its first since leading 13-12.

The Sailors clinched the game on another net violation by the Breakers.

Newport again came up with a strong finish to cap game No. 2. The score was tied at 19, but Obradovich hit into the net and the Sailors had the lead for good at 20-19. A kill by Cope and a botched kill attempt by Grand Pre completed a 3-0 run for a 22-19 lead. The Sailors went on to win the game, 25-20.

“I was really happy with how well we finished both of those games, although I was disappointed the way we started the first and fourth games,” Glenn said. “We had too many unforced errors and we need to fix that.”

Newport went on a 6-0 tear in the third game to open up a 19-13 lead in Game No. 3. Laguna, though, went on to score nine of the next 12 points to forge a tie at 22-22 on a kill by Grand Pre. A Newport error gave Laguna a 25-23 win.

The fourth game belonged to Laguna. The Breakers three times built leads of five points, the last at 13-8 and reached their biggest lead, seven points, at 18-11. Newport mounted a late comeback and pulled to within 23-20, but could get no closer. A put back by Breakers senior setter Alexandra Palmer completed a 25-20 win.

Buckingham finished with 15 kills and three aces in a balanced Sailors attack.

Kirby Burnham had 12 kills, Jennifer Palmquist had eight kills and three blocks, Kelly Heenan had 14 digs, Mackenzi Campbell had six digs and six assists, Cope had two blocks and Arielle Lysacek finished with 37 assists for Newport Harbor.

“There have been a lot of great battles between Newport Harbor and Laguna Beach, both in girls’ volleyball and boys’ volleyball, and this was one of those matches,” Laguna Coach Lance Stewart said. “We’re not quite ready to beat a team of Newport’s caliber. That said, we were right there with a chance to beat them.

“Newport’s a great team and they deserved to win.”

The Sailors leave Thursday for Chicago where they will compete at the Nike Challenge. The tournament, hosted by Mother McAuley High, begins Friday and runs through Saturday.

Twenty-four teams will be split into eight pools. The Sailors are in Pool 5 along with Crystal Lake South High of Crystal Lake, Ill., and Catholic Memorial High of Waukesha, WI.