Laguna Blanca girls volleyball got its revenge on crosstown rival Bishop Diego in a four-set victory on Thursday in Hope Ranch.
The Owls bounced back from a five-set loss to the Cardinals with a strong home win after dropping the opening set, 17-25, 25-16, 25-22, 27-25.
“We did a great job tonight executing our game plan and getting into rallies and minimizing our errors,” Laguna Blanca head coach Tanner Stevens said. “When we’re able to pass that well and be scrappy on defense, we’re a fun team to watch.
“We lost a lot of five-set matches and close sets early in the year, and it’s paying off now as we’re finding ways to win the close ones and grind on defense when it gets tight.”
The Owl duo of Lauren Kenny and Maritt Blabey were forces on both sides of the ball, recording big double-doubles. Kenny tallied 18 kills and 18 digs, while Blabey ended the night with 12 kills and 23 digs.
Meanwhile, Laguna Blanca’s Greta Alldredge hammered down 15 kills and Emma Bouvat-Merlin scooped up a team-high 30 digs.
On the other side, Karina Urzua filled up the stat sheet once again for Bishop Diego with 22 kills, 28 digs and four aces. Natalie Chan also had a double-double of 11 kills and 22 digs, while Brighton Montag added 24 digs of her own.
“The Owls played solid tonight and they executed at a high level,” Bishop Diego head coach Dillan Bennett said. “We expected them to play better than the last time and they passed the ball much better and ran their offense.
“We struggled to attack well because their defense was strong and our serving was less effective. We will learn from this experience and get back to work next week.”
Carpinteria High 3, Santa Paula 0
The Warriors won their third straight league match with a sweep of the Cardinals on Thursday in Carpinteria, 25-17, 26-24, 25-10.
“This was a highly offensive game,” Carpinteria High head coach Evan Rowbottom said. “With a strong and steady defense as our foundation, it gave us the freedom to have the option of using all our front row attackers.”
Cora Nimmons led the Warriors in both kills and digs, while Isla Moore and Isabella Stovall turned in strong performances in the middle. The duo of Nelly Dominguez and Vicky Martinez also shined on the defensive end.
“This game is only the beginning of the Warriors hosting two weeks of games at home and we can’t wait to get back out there and show our home crowd that their hard work is not only improving their individual skills, but winning games,” Rowbottom said.
Ventura 3, San Marcos 0
The shorthanded Royals suffered a road sweep at the hands of the Cougars on Thursday, 20-25, 19-25, 14-25.
Margaret Deakyne’s six kills led the San Marcos offense, while Harper Dees collected four kills and Anja Firestone recorded 10 digs.
“It just wasn’t our best game tonight, unfortunately. We thought we would have some good momentum going in after Tuesday’s game against Santa Barbara and we just couldn’t really pull it together tonight,” San Marcos head coach Erica Downing said.
“I know we’re fighting some things, so we’re going to take a good weekend off and come back strong.”
The Royals will host crosstown rival Dos Pueblos on Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. inside the Thunderhut.
