Aliso Niguel bests Huntington Beach in CIF Division 2 girls’ volleyball final
For the better part of two months, the Huntington Beach High School girls’ volleyball team was nearly untouchable.
During a 21-match winning streak, the Oilers were pushed to a final set just once on Sept. 11 versus Beckman, the day the streak began, but all good things must come to an end.
Senior middle blocker Brooke Pattschull had 10 kills and 10½ blocks, as top-seeded Aliso Niguel defeated Huntington Beach 27-25, 26-24, 20-25, 25-21 on Saturday in the CIF Southern Section Division 2 championship match.
“We worked so hard all season for this,” Pattschull said. “We wanted to be here, and we fought as hard as we could, knowing that we could do it.”
Aliso Niguel (26-4) captured its first CIF title since 2014.
Junior opposite Madyson Smith had 15 kills and 2½ blocks for the Wolverines. Senior outside hitter Kendra Duffey added 13 kills and 3½ blocks, and sophomore setter Nicole Feliciano distributed 39 assists to go with four kills and 2½ blocks.
Huntington Beach coach Craig Pazanti said he felt that the match came down to the first two sets, when the Oilers held leads of 23-20 and 22-18, respectively, and failed to make either stand up.
“They didn’t quit, and they kept pressure on us, and they blocked a bunch of balls and kept themselves in the match like that,” Pazanti said of the Wolverines. “… We haven’t seen a team that physical since super early in the season, so we try to prepare for it. They did a great job tonight.”
Everything Pattschull touched turned to gold for the Wolverines, whose front-row defense keyed the late-set rallies.
“We’re really good when our back’s against the wall,” Aliso Niguel coach Richelle Whiting said. “It’s when we play our best, and so it’s a love-hate thing. You know, you find yourself in situations maybe you wouldn’t normally be in because you know you can get out of it, but when you play a tough team and they jump on you, we’re never afraid to keep going, so it’s a good quality.”
Huntington Beach (28-6), which was appearing in its first CIF final since 2009, was vying for its second section championship as a program, the first of which came in 1996.
Sophomore outside hitter Haylee LaFontaine and senior opposite Lillian Perkins led Huntington Beach with 12 kills each. LaFontaine also had a team-high five service aces, while senior middle blocker Sydney Murrey contributed eight kills and 4½ blocks for the Oilers, who were the Surf League champions.
Sophomore setter Dani Sparks had 20 assists and two aces, sophomore setter Meghan Freck handed out 17 assists, senior outside hitter Kate O’Steen provided seven kills, and freshman opposite Taylor Ponchak chipped in with three kills and 2½ blocks.
Pazanti continued to be impressed by his team’s defense in the back row. Apart from their defense, junior libero Tori Hagan and freshman outside hitter Olivia Foye each had three aces.
“When [Foye is] back there with Hagan and Sparks, it’s like having three liberos back there, so that’s kind of the way we’ve played the whole year, and we’ll regroup and try to get back after it Tuesday at state regionals,” Pazanti said.
Without a neutral site hosting the CIF finals, the bleachers were pulled out on both sides of the Huntington Beach gym, with a strong turnout from both schools.
“I’ve never really seen this big of a crowd come out here,” Hagan said. “I think that was really cool, and to come and cheer us on, I think that really helped bring us up.”
The brackets for the CIF State Southern California regional playoffs were released on Sunday. Huntington Beach drew a road match at San Diego Torrey Pines to open the state tournament on Tuesday.
“We just know we’re all going to stand up for each other, play for each other,” Murrey said. “No words will really do any of that. We just know we have to trust each other.”
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Updates
1:47 p.m. Nov. 9, 2021: This story was updated with reaction to the match, as well as Huntington Beach’s upcoming schedule in the CIF State Southern California Division I regional playoffs.
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