PREP PLAYOFF PAIRINGS : Girls’ Volleyball : Despite Step Up, Irvine Remains No. 1 Spot

The Irvine High School girls’ volleyball team moved up a division this year, but it still enters the Southern Section 5-A playoffs undefeated and seeded No. 1.

Last season, Irvine, led by Bev Oden and Cari Delson, won the 4-A championship and then defeated 5-A champion Newport Harbor for the state title.

Irvine’s record in the 4-A division in the 1980s--3 4-A championships and 4 appearances in the division final--was a major reason the entire South Coast League was moved to 5-A.

The move hasn’t seemed to bother Irvine (14-0), though the smaller 16-team draw--the 4-A has 32 teams--means Irvine will be playing good teams much sooner.

The Vaqueros open Thursday against Tustin (10-4), and if they win, will face either Angelus League champion Bishop Montgomery (12-1) or Hueneme (11-3), the No. 2 team from the very strong Channel League.

A big reason for Irvine’s success is the 6-foot 2-inch Oden, generally considered the finest player in the state. Though it lost Delson--she’s a starter at Pepperdine--Irvine also has Melinda Norton and Jennifer Fu, both 4-year starters.

Mark McKenzie, Irvine coach, recognizes that if his team--which is very strong and very favored--does not win the title, some may perceive this as a disappointing season.

Most likely to disappoint Irvine is second-seeded Santa Barbara (16-0) or No. 3 Mira Costa (19-0), which has won 5 5-A titles in the 1980s. Corona del Mar (12-2) is seeded fourth.

With Irvine out of the 4-A playoffs, top-seeded Gahr (14-0) appears to have a great opportunity to win its second 4-A title in 3 years. Sunset League champion Edison (13-2) is seeded fourth and will probably get its shot at Gahr in the semifinals.

A possible dark horse in this division is Esperanza, the Empire League champions. Esperanza enters the playoffs 17-1 and seems to have a favorable draw, facing Long Beach Poly (7-7) in the first round.

The 3-A draw shows how powerful the Freeway League has been this season. League champion Sunny Hills (14-2) is the top-seeded, and runner-up La Habra (10-5) is third. Another county team expected to contend is Century League champion Canyon (15-1).

Of the three county teams in the 2-A draw, Orange League champion Western (12-2) is given the best shot for success.