L.A. County girls’ volleyball: Playing for a cause in the South Bay
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Mira Costa and Redondo are always, it seems, playing for something -- a Southern Section championship, a Southern California regional title, Bay League supremacy or South Bay-area bragging rights.
In a Bay League match at 6:45 tonight/Thursday at Redondo, the teams will play with an even greater purpose.
At the behest of Redondo Principal Mary Little, the match will serve as a fund raiser for the American Red Cross to aid victims of last week’s Southern California wildfires, with all proceeds to benefit the cause.
‘We wanted to do something to help, and it seemed like the logical thing to do,’ Redondo Coach Tommy Chaffins said.
Admission for the match will be $7, and Chaffins hopes the Sea Hawks’ sizable gym, which seats about 2,500, will sell out, as it did when the teams played for the Southern California regional championship last year after Redondo had upset previously unbeaten Mira Costa in the Southern Section Division I-AA final match.
The Mustangs, ranked No. 1 nationally then, are top-ranked again by PrepVolleyball.com. The Sea Hawks are No. 21 nationally in the same rankings.
So go on out, everyone, have a look at some of the best high school volleyball players in the Southland.
Mira Costa (26-0, 10-0), also ranked No. 1 in the state, boasts a collection of stars in Falyn Fonoimoana, Lane Carico, Kendall Bateman, Stevi Robinson, Lauren Law and Pauline Acres.
Redondo (25-6, 7-1), ranked ninth in the state, features senior standouts Megan Saraceno and Lauren Allen, who shared MVP honors as the Sea Hawks won their own tournament last weekend. The Sea Hawks also have Lara Dykstra, who is the freshman phenom that Fonoimoana was last season.
‘I think it’s a rivalry that’s really evolved over the last three or four years,’ Chaffins said. ‘The South Bay is a volleybal-crazy community, and people like to come out and see the best players when they’re in high school.’
Let’s hope they come out tonight for a good cause. They did the last time the teams met, in a Bay League match on Oct. 16 that benefited breast-cancer research. About $4,700 was raised at that match, according to Chaffins.
-- Lauren Peterson