Mira Costa Girl Spikers Are No. 1 and ‘Getting to Feel and Play Like It’

South Torrance High was tied, 2-2, in the second game of a girls volleyball match Tuesday against host Mira Costa.

Cheers of encouragement came from the South bench. South was given hope by the fact it had taken Mira Costa to a 16-14 game in their first meeting this year.

But the hope was short-lived.

Mira Costa’s Jennifer Streatfield served for eight consecutive points, including three aces, and the Mustangs went on to win the game, 15-4, and the match in three games. The other scores were 15-5 and 15-3.

Although South is considered one of the better teams in the Ocean League, the Spartans were merely another tuneup for Mira Costa, which improved to 14-0 overall and 9-0 in league matches. The Mustangs are ranked No. 1 in the CIF-Southern Section 5-A Division, No. 1 in the state by Cal-Hi Sports and No. 1 in the nation by Volleyball Monthly and USA Today.

“We’re getting to feel and play like we’re No. 1,” Coach Dae Lea Aldrich said. “I think we’re deserving of the ranking. We’ve played some awfully tough teams and won.”

Two weeks ago Mira Costa won the prestigious San Marcos Invitational in Santa Barbara, beating Corona Del Mar in the final, 15-11. Corona Del Mar is ranked No. 3 in the nation.

Aldrich said the tournament gave her team valuable experience playing under pressure. Teams played each match to one game, instead of the usual best of five. The Mustangs defeated Santa Barbara, rated No. 3 in the 5-A Division, in the semifinals in an emotional 16-14 game. During one rally, the ball cleared the net 22 times before Mira Costa lost a side-out.

That type of competition is essential to Mira Costa, Aldrich said, because the Mustangs rarely play close matches in the Ocean League.

“We have to work extra hard in practice,” she said. “Our league situation makes practice very important for us.”

The competition in the Ocean league is not as rigorous as in the Sea View or South Coast leagues. Corona Del Mar and Newport Harbor of the Sea View are ranked in the 5-A top 10, as are Capistrano Valley and Irvine of the South Coast League.

Because Southern Section rules allow a team to play in only two tournaments, Mira Costa uses its practices to stay sharp during league play.

“We get our competition from practice,” senior setter and captain Piper Hahn said. “Our motivation to practice hard is our goal--to win the CIF and state championship.”

In Tuesday’s match, Hahn set 20 kills, accounting for almost half of Mira Costa’s points.

Middle blocker Kristal Attwood has returned from an injury to a tendon in her right ankle. But while Attwood was out for eight matches, junior Jennifer Smith filled in ably.

Outside hitter-middle blocker Heidi Eick, who leads the team in kills, added to her total Tuesday with 11 against South. Corie Davis and Streatfield lead Mira Costa in digs.

Mira Costa’s league season ends Nov. 2 against Redondo. Then the Mustangs get down to serious business. The following week they’ll open the 5-A playoffs where Corona Del Mar and Santa Barbara loom, looking for revenge.

Last year, without a senior, Mira Costa lost in the 5-A finals to Irvine and in the state Division I quarterfinals to 4-A champion Gahr. Those losses were the only blemishes on a 24-2 season.

This year Mira Costa is looking for perfection.