Miraleste Girls Win Tennis Title

The only consolation for Palos Verdes High School was that there’s always next year.

For Miraleste, that may be the grand prize.

The Peninsula School District had been considering closing Miraleste, but decided against doing so at a meeting Monday night. Instead, Miraleste will become a junior-senior high.

The Miraleste girls’ tennis team then demonstrated Tuesday why it is probably one of the best prep teams ever, trouncing Palos Verdes, 14-4, in the Southern Section 4-A final at the West End Tennis Racquet Club in Torrance.

Miraleste had thought it was the best team last year, too, but the title slipped away from the Marauders when two of their top three players missed the final because of a national tournament. Palos Verdes, which had already lost twice to Miraleste in the regular season, beat the Marauders, 12-6.

This year, there was no conflict, so everybody showed up, and the Marauders, 20-0, demonstrated their superiority. It was the fifth straight year the teams had met in the final.

“Yes, of course, this makes up for last year,” Miraleste Coach Jim Hanson said. “(And) we’re gonna dominate the next year and the next year and the year after that.”

Palos Verdes Coach John Fullerton said: “I don’t even want to think about next year. They have a lot of talent and dedication. My girls played well, but they ran into a buzz saw.”

Miraleste’s win wasn’t the only blowout of the day. San Marino won its second straight 3-A title and fourth in five years with a 16-2 rout of Thousand Oaks. San Marino has won 48 straight matches.

Pasadena Mayfield also won in a romp, winning its second straight 1-A title with a 13-5 victory over Thousand Oaks La Reina, which lost for the third straight year in the final.

In the 2-A final, Indio and Chaminade showed how finals are supposed to be, tying in sets with nine each. Chaminade won the title, however, and dethroned defending champion Indio because it won more games, 72-66.