San Marcos girls beach volleyball began their quest for a CIF-SS Div. 1 title with a 4-1 victory over Notre Dame Academy on Saturday at Ridgway Courts.
Both the Royals and the Gryphons received a bye in the opening round before Saturday’s second-round matchup.
The No. 4 San Marcos pairing of Samantha Fallon and Katie Kracke opened things up by setting the tone for San Marcos for the rest of the day.
Fallon and Kracke engaged in some back-and-forth play with their opponents to begin each set, but they eventually pulled away in both to earn the two-set win, 21-15, 21-18.
“Katie was all over the court and did not let a ball touch the ground without 100% effort,” San Marcos coach Tina Brown said. “Between Katie and some solid blocks from Sam, they were a very tough team.”
With that victory, the Royals grabbed the early 1-0 lead as a team.
On the No. 2 court, San Marcos’ Elena Thomas and Evyn Miller battled with their matchup in an effort to take a commanding 2-0 advantage.
Thomas and Miller held a 16-15 lead at one point in the first set, but Notre Dame came storming back and stole the first set by a score of 23-21.
However, the Royal duo buckled down and took control of the game, earning wins in the final two sets, 21-18, 15-7, to give their team a 2-0 lead.
“A healthy Elena and Evyn will be a very tough team to play,” Brown said. “With some good leadership from Elena, they were able to pull out a win.”
Needing just one more win to claim the victory and move on to the quarterfinals, the No. 3 duo of Paige Hoadley and Kalyin Cooney took the court.
Hoadley and Cooney raced out to a 6-0 lead to start the first set, but their opponent fought back to tie things up at 18-18. However, the San Marcos pairing collected themselves and won the opening set 21-18.
They followed that up with a close matchup in set two, but the Royals eventually pulled away and won the set 21-16 to clinch the overall team victory.
“Paige was calm and smooth throughout the match, setting Kaylin up to have her will attacking and making shots all over the court,” Brown said.
Just a few minutes after Hoadley and Cooney wrapped up the win, the San Marcos No. 5 pairing of Isla McClintock and Reese Paskin finished off their victory as well.
McClintock and Paskin defeated their opponent 21-14 in the first set and followed that up with a dominant 21-14 win in set two.
“They both served really well, Isla was all over the court defensively and Reese was a powerhouse to be reckoned with at the net,” Brown said.
That victory at the fives gave the Royals a 4-0 lead over the Gryphons.
The final matchup to finish was a back-and-forth affair between the top duos of each team, with Cora Loomer and Josie Gamderbella representing San Marcos.
Despite falling behind 7-3 to begin the first set, Loomer and Gamberdella shook off the rust and powered to a 21-17 victory in the first set.
However, Notre Dame began to gain momentum in the second set and came out on top 21-15 to force a tiebreaking third set.
There, the Gryphons continued to ride that momentum and pulled out a 15-12 win for the team’s lone point.
“Cora was unstoppable at the net, but Notre Dame Academy found a way to come up with some big plays at key times and pull out a victory,” Brown said.
The Royals will host their quarterfinal matchup against Huntington Beach on Wednesday at Ridgway Courts at 3 p.m.
JSerra 5, Santa Barbara High 0
The Dons had their season come to a close with a second-round loss to No. 2-seeded JSerra in San Juan Capistrano on Saturday.
“As a team, we improved so much from the beginning of the season,” Santa Barbara coach Kristin Hempy said. “This group was a fun, hardworking team to coach. I’m proud of their efforts and accomplishments this year.
At the No. 1 matchup, Santa Barbara’s Gwen Chenoweth and Keenan Engebretson fell 21-11, 21-12.
The No. 2 Dons duo of Lucy Fisher and Stella Borgioli dropped their matchup in two sets as well, 21-15, 21-16.
“Lucy and Stella battled really well and had such smart shots against their opponents,” Hempy said.
As for the threes, Lola Heckman and Lexi Horton suffered a two-set loss to their opponents, 21-19, 21-9.
The No. 4 pairing of Paylin Marcillac and Blake Saunders provided the tightest matchup for Santa Barbara High, losing 23-21, 21-16.
“Blake and Paylin were so close to grabbing a set in this match,” Hempy said.
Rounding out the losses for the Dons were Ona Caballero and Christa Moellekan-Lezama by scores of 21-11, 21-11.