Shae Delany blasted 16 kills to pace a balanced Santa Barbara High attack in a 25-12, 25-20, 25-17 sweep at Buena in a Channel League girls volleyball match.
The victory combined with Oxnard’s win over San Marcos on Tuesday gives the Dons a share of the league title.
With two matches remaining, Santa Barbara is 11-1 in league play and San Marcos and Oxnard are tied for second at 9-3. A Santa Barbara win on Thursday at home against Ventura would clinch the outright title.
Middle Nicole Schuetz was second on the Dons in kills with eight and had three blocks. Whitney Meister put away six kills, Emmy Werner had five and Gracie Meinzer and Augustine Wooten tallied four apiece.
“Shae had a great offensive night for us, with a balanced offense and defensive effort from all players contributing to the win,” said coach Kristin Hempy. “Gracie Meinzer did great work running our offense.”
Meinzer dished out 26 assists, had two blocks, four digs and one service ace.
Werner was the dig leader with 15 and Tessa de Albergaria added 13, and Wooten contributed three blocks.
Oxnard 3, San Marcos 0
Oxnard used strong hitting from the outside and tough serving to sweep the Royals, 25-16, 25-23, 25-19.
“We battled throughout the game, but in the end Oxnard was hitting on all cylinders and beat us,” said San Marcos coach Tina Brown.
Oxnard, ranked behind Santa Barbara in the CIF-SS Division 4 poll at No. 6, beat all three local teams this season.
San Marcos was led by Eloise McGibben with 12 kills and four blocks. Riley Green posted a double-double of 11 kills and 10 digs, and Mia Miller played well in the back row, recording 17 digs.
Anika Huelskamp finished with 27 kills, 16 digs and five aces to lead Oxnard, and setter Jada Stone had five kills, 36 assists and 13 digs.
Dos Pueblos 3, Rio Mesa 0
Chloe Hoffman hammered 19 kills for Dos Pueblos in a 25-14, 25-16, 25-12 sweep over Rio Mesa on Tuesday.
The win improved the Chargers to 8-4 in Channel League and 17-7 overall.
Hoffman added five digs, two blocks, two aces and an assist to her stat line.
Grace Posey contributed seven kills to the attack, setter Halle Rillie had a double-double of 30 assists and 10 digs and Layla McQuiggan picked seven digs and three kills. Malia Brofferio served five aces.
Bishop Diego 3, Grace Brethren 0
Siena Urzua did it all for the Cardinals, recording a triple-double in a 25-16, 25-15, 25-3 sweep over Grace Brethren.
The senior served 10 aces, had 10 kills and 10 digs.
“Siena played her best match in her four-year career tonight in her first full match back,” said coach Dillan Bennett. “Her (club) soccer schedule has been a tough grind, but we’re lucky to have her back as we try to stay in the hunt for a league title. While her point-scoring stats were big, she patrolled the back court in a way that has been missing.”
Younger sister, Eliana Urzua, got the Cardinals off to a great start, serving four of her 10 aces during a 19-0 run in the first set. She played the role of setter and had 25 assists to go with eight kills.
“Eliana could get her hands on most of our transition opportunities, which improved our offense in a big way,” said Bennett. “This was our first match in league play where we only had eight hitting errors on the night. That was a testament to how well Siena controlled the ball in the back court.”
The Cardinals play at St. Bonaventure on Thursday with a chance to take sole possession of first place in the Tri-Valley League.
Carpinteria 3, Fillmore 0
The Warriors rallied from a 22-17 deficit in the first set and won 25-23, setting the tone for the sweep on Tuesday night in a Citrus Coast League match. The scores were 25-23, 25-20, 25-17.
In the second set, the serving of Ashley Mora brought Carpinteria back from a 7-1 deficit to a 10-10 tie.
“From there we steadied out to close out the next two sets,” said coach Greg Novak.
He praised the back-row play of Sophie Olvera and Maya Shelly, and the play of Amarrisse Camargo at the opposite position.
Carpinteria will host its Fall Classic Tournament on Saturday.
Cate 3, Foothill Tech 0
Cate got good play from freshman Fallon Erickson and senior Gigi Geyer in a 25-21, 25-18, 26-16 sweep of Foothill Tech on Tuesday in a TVL match.
“That was a special performance by the entire team,” said coach Jordon Dyer. “It was awesome to see our seniors play so well on Senior Night. Seniors Ava Bracher and GiGi Geyer came out strong and never stepped down. Our team’s defensive hustle was really impressive tonight. We made several tough digs that ended up turning into poins.
“Our team has hit a pretty nice rhythm, and it’s a great feeling to have going into the closing stretch of season.”