CITYWIDE — The first round games of the California Interscholastic Federation Southern Section girls’ volleyball playoffs were played on Tuesday night, with several Santa Monica-area teams in participation. Second round games of the state tournament will be played tonight.
Santa Monica High School (14-8), No. 1 seed from the Ocean League, swept San Gorgonio (6-10), with game scores of 25-15, 25-14, and 25-10.
The Vikings, who were ranked No. 6 in CIF-SS Division 3-AA, will next play Lancaster High School (23-3), the No. 2 seed from the Golden League. The game is scheduled for a 7 p.m. start and will be played in Samohi’s North Gym.
Lighthouse Christian Academy (12-4) beat California Academy of Math and Sciences (8-7) by a score of 3-0. It was a close match for the No. 2 seed from the Coastal League of CIF-SS Division 5-AA. CAMS, No. 3 from the Delphic League, fought hard in all three games — losing with scores of 27-25, 25-23, and 25-21.
The Lighthouse Saints, ranked No. 9 in CIF-SS Div. 5-AA season-ending polls, will next play tonight at Santa Monica College. The game is scheduled for 7:30 p.m., and Head Coach Stephanie Sommer’s team will face the girls from Lone Pine High School (23-3). The Lone Pine Eagles, No. 1 seed from the Desert Mountain League, haven’t lost since Sept. 17 and are on a 19-game win streak.
No. 1 seed from the Heritage League, Pacifica Christian High School (20-7), also won their first round game, beating No. 4 seed from the Montview League, Duarte High School (9-14). Pacifica Seawolves’ first-year head coach Billy Allen led the girls to a 3-0 overall match score win, with game scores of 25-16, 25-17, and 25-13.
Pacifica will next face Desert High School (17-4), the No. 2 seed from the High Desert League. The game is scheduled for a 7 p.m. start and will be played at the Crossroads High School’s gym.
Unfortunately, one local team was eliminated from the first round — St. Monica High School (11-3) lost to Thatcher High School (10-3). It was a very tough-fought match for the senior-heavy Mariners; they took Duarte to extra points in the first two games, but ultimately lost with scores of 27-25, 28-26, 25-21.
Head coach Allison Rivera will look to rebuild during the off-season, and will come out next season with some fresh faces.
The winning teams of tonight’s second round CIF-SS games will advance to the quarterfinals, to be played on Saturday. Semifinal games will be played next Tuesday, Nov. 16. And the championship finals are set to be played at Cypress College over two days next weekend, Nov. 19 and 20.
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