Breakers excelling in college

They are just three years removed from accomplishing great things as teammates on the Laguna Beach High girls’ volleyball team.

Tonight though, they will be on opposite sides of the net as Pac-10 action gets underway. And, they will be Wildcats and Trojans on this night, not Breakers.

University of Arizona sophomore Dana Hutchinson will battle against USC juniors Zoe Garrett and Mychaela Miller in the match at Arizona. And all three players have been pivotal to their teams’ success in the young women’s volleyball season.

Hutchinson (Laguna Beach class of 2008), an outside hitter, has helped the No. 19 Wildcats (11-0) get off to their best start in program history. They have won all four tournaments they’ve played in, including their latest conquest at their host Arizona Invitational, which ended Sunday with a three-game sweep over UTEP.

Hutchinson, who helped lead the Breakers to back-to-back CIF Southern Section Division II-AA titles and was two-time Orange Coast League MVP, was named to the all-tournament team for the Wildcats at the Cardinal Classic at Louisville in late August. Heading into last weekend’s action, she was second on the team with 74 kills.

Garrett and Miller (class of ‘07), who helped lead Laguna Beach to the CIF State Volleyball Championships Division III final as seniors, are also invaluable parts to the Trojans.

Garrett, a middle blocker who shared league MVP with Hutchinson in 2006, is a three-year varsity starter for No. 13 USC (11-1). She leads the team with 30 block assists and earned all-tournament team accolades at the Wolverine Invitational Sept. 11 to 12.

Miller typically doesn’t start for the Trojans, but is valuable off the bench. She is second on the team with 26 assists.

USC also has another Laguna graduate, Paige Obradovich, but she’s out for the season with a neck injury.

Meanwhile, Alexandra Palmer is doing her thing at Santa Clara. The freshman, who was also on those 2006 and ’07 teams, was named Orange Coast League co-MVP with teammate Piper Obradovich her senior year.

At Santa Clara, Palmer is splitting time at setter for the Broncos (8-4) with Emily Burke. She has 184 assists.