Southern Section Volleyball Final : Irvine Favored Over Gahr in Bid for Its 3rd Volleyball Title

Irvine High School plays Gahr at 6:15 tonight for the 4-A Southern Section girls’ volleyball championship at Marina High School in Huntington Beach.

A trip to the finals was not unexpected for Irvine. The Vaqueros were seeded No. 2 and had a relatively easy time, losing only one game in the semifinals to defending champion Notre Dame.

Irvine already has two titles, thanks in large part to the Oden family. In 1981, the Vaqueros, led by 4-A player of the year Kim Oden, defeated Santa Monica for the championship. Three years later, Elaina Oden was player of the year as Edison was beaten for the title.

This season Bev Oden, middle blocker Cari Delson, a junior who had 18 kills against Notre Dame, and sophomore hitter Melinda Norton make Irvine the favorite.

Gahr, a three-time Southern Section champion itself, upset Torrance in the quarterfinals and then beat Capistrano Valley to get to the title match.

Defending champion Manhattan Beach Mira Costa plays Oxnard Hueneme in an 8:45 p.m game for the 5-A championship.

Mira Costa (21-0) brings a 45-match winning streak into the finals. The Mustangs also won the state championship and were named national champion by Volleyball Monthly magazine, which ranked the team No. 1 again this season.

Hueneme, ranked No. 2 in the 5-A, has a 17-0 record and beat Corona del Mar and Woodbridge to make the finals.

In other matches, Flintridge Sacred Heart plays Mammoth at 9:30 a.m. for the Small Schools title, followed by the 1-A final between Brentwood and North Hollywood Campbell Hall at 11:30 a.m.

Atascadero plays Thousand Oaks for the 2-A title at 1:30 p.m., with the 3-A final between Ojai Nordhoff and Calabasas at 3:30 p.m.