The Cupertino Courier
Sports
Mustangs fall in CCS volleyball finals; Matadors lose in three to Homestead in the season opener
By MIKE BARNHART
Although the Mustangs missed an opportunity to win their first Central Coast Section girls volleyball championship, Homestead High School played well enough last week to earn its first invitation to the CIF Northern California regional tournament.
The Mustangs fell 3-1 in the CCS Division I title match to San Benito on Nov. 18 at Independence High, but their second-place finish gained them a berth in the NorCal regionals. With a 26-13 overall record, Homestead earned the No. 4 seed and a home match in the first round of the eight-team event.
Homestead was set to play Davis (31-5) of the Sac-Joaquin Section on Nov. 21. A victory likely would lead to a road date at Foothill (35-0) of Pleasanton, the top seed, on Nov. 25.
"We played out of character tonight," Homestead coach John Milkovich explained after the Mustangs were beaten in the Division I tourney by San Benito for the second year in a row. "Since October, we have been a steady, tough team that does not get fazed by mental errors. But tonight, the errors got to the girls."
The Haybalers (31-7), who ousted the Mustangs in the semifinal round of the 2005 tourney, captured their first CCS crown 25-19, 25-22, 22-25, 25-19.
After falling behind 10-2 in the first game, Homestead fought back to within 22-19, but San Benito claimed the last three points. After losing the first five points and trailing in game two 6-1, Homestead battled back to take a 21-20 lead. San Benito again was strong late, scoring five of the last six points.
The Mustangs won game three, as sophomore outside hitter Katherine Fischer led the way with seven kills, two service aces and an assist. Key plays down the stretch by Kelly Verstegen and Lauren Gniadek, the team's only seniors, secured the victory. With the score knotted at 20 and Gniadek serving, Verstegen scored on a kill and then a block. Gniadek then scored an ace to make it 23-20, and the Mustangs held on.
Homestead had opportunities in the final game, but San Benito pulled away with an 8-1 run after the contest had been tied at 14.
Fischer, who finished with a team high 23 kills during the championship match, had a lot of help in the Mustangs' 25-23, 25-15, 25-22 triumph over Carlmont in the semifinals.
"We had a lot of balance against Carlmont," Milkovich noted. "We were passing well and we had five girls putting the ball away."
Fischer (12) and junior Lauren Hoopes (eight) had the most kills, but Verstegen and juniors Justine Wales and Allie Fickett also chipped in with key hits. Sophomore setter Melissa Cheng's nifty passes led to several of the kills.
The relatively easy three-game win over the defending Division I champion may have surprised some observers, but not Milkovich.
"We have been working hard, and our league prepares us for these games," the coach commented. "We have to battle every night."
Homestead finished fourth in the De Anza Division of the Santa Clara Valley Athletic League behind Division II playoff participants Los Altos, Palo Alto and Los Gatos. Two other De Anza teams reached the playoffs--Mountain View in Division II and Saratoga in Division III.
Although they won the match, the Mustangs lost defensive specialist Elizabeth Case. The hustling sophomore broke her left hand, diving for a loose ball. Junior Diana Moberg replaced Case in the rotation during the championship match.
Fischer's 14 kills helped Homestead out of the first round 25-20, 25-21, 25-12 over Monta Vista. The Matadors, who won the El Camino Division championship with a 10-2 record, finished 17-10 overall.
Seniors Alex Gatley, Emily Rubin, Kelly Bodwin, Jane Xu, Devin Peters and Kim Ang played their final match for the Matadors.
