In a showdown of CIF Southern Section volleyball powerhouses, five-foot-10 senior outside hitter Lanti Moye-McLaren had a match-high 16 kills and three aces to lead Marymount High to a 26-24, 25-23, 25-21 sweep of host Mira Costa on Friday night in Manhattan Beach.
The Sailors, ranked No. 1 in this week's Division 1A poll, trailed in all three sets before rallying to win each one despite the noisy crowd being against them.
“They have been doing this to me all season,” Marymount Coach Cari Klein said of her team’s knack for comebacks this season. “In Vegas (Durango Tournament) we were down 23-13 and 15-4 and came back to win. I think these girls don’t get started until they get behind. Their goal is to give me a full head of gray hair.”
Trailing 14-7 in the third set, the Sailors managed to score 10 straight points to stun Mira Costa, which lost to San Clemente in the second round of the Division 1AA playoffs last season.
“We have a tough time holding onto our leads,” Mustangs junior middle blocker Kelsey McIntire said. “For some reason we get up on teams and aren’t able to close the game out. We've had this problem all season.”
The host Mustangs (4-6), ranked sixth in Division 1AA, were ahead 17-12 in the opening set before Moye-McLaren recorded three kills and a block as the Sailors went on a seven-point run to gain control. Mira Costa tied the score at 24-24 before Marymount scored the next two points off a block by Victoria Jasuta and an ace serve from Carly Wagenbach.
Jasuta finished the match with seven kills and three blocks and Wagenbach added a match-high five aces for the Sailors (9-1), who needed five sets to beat Mira Costa last season.
“I thought we had enough energy from all the fans but not closing out that first game really hurt us and took the excitement out of the crowd,” Mira Costa Coach Lisa Zimmerman said. “We’re about nine games into the season and we keep giving up big leads... but the season is so early that I’m not that concerned because I feel like we improve with every match.”
In the second set, the Sailors jumped ahead 8-1 lead before the Mustangs came storming back to score the next nine points behind the play of senior Maddy Klineman, taking a 10-8 lead. Both teams traded points as neither was able to pull away, accounting for eight ties and nine lead changes in the second set before the Sailors eventually won it, 25-23.
Klineman had a team-high 11 kills and two blocks while junior setter Corie Bain had four kills, five blocks and a match-high 16 assists to lead the Mustangs.
“They’re definitely a very tough opponent,” Moye-McLaren said of the Mustangs. “This is a big rivalry game for us and a match that we anticipate every season.”
Lauren Greskovics-Fuller had six kills and an ace in the match while her sister Manon had seven kills that all came in the third game for the Sailors.
“They played well for us,” Klein said of the Fuller sisters. “Lauren did a great job in the first game and Manon was the big key in the third game. She came in and provided a big spark for us and was an instrumental part of the win.”
The defending Division 1A champion Sailors open Sunshine League play on Thursday at Ramona Convent. Mira Costa begins Bay League play Tuesday with a home match against Palos Verdes.
