ORANGE COUNTY ALL-STAR VOLLEYBALL GAMES : North Victory Completes Taylor’s Big Day

All in all, it wasn’t a bad day for Huntington Beach volleyball player Matt Taylor.

After making an oral commitment to UCLA, Taylor had 11 kills and was named the most valuable player in the North’s 10-15, 15-11, 15-9 victory over the South in the Orange County All-County match Friday night at Golden West College.

But Taylor, The Times’ Orange County player of the year, was a little upset after the match.

One of his kills late in the second game gave Woodbridge’s Todd Beebe of the South a bloody nose. Beebe left near the end of the second game, but returned early in the third.

“I was telling my parents a few months ago that one of my goals was to give somebody a bloody nose,” said Taylor, who plays on the same club team as Beebe. “But why did it have to be Todd, one of my best friends?”

The girls’ match was injury-free.

Tracy Schriber of Corona del Mar was named a co-MVP, leading the North to a 15-9, 15-4 victory. Schriber shared the MVP award with Laguna Beach’s Ashley Wacholder of the South.

The match was a blowout. Schriber and La Habra’s Missy Clements each had seven kills as the North won for the third consecutive year.

Schriber had four kills in the first game to lead the North. Edison’s Debbie Howard had two kills, two blocks and an ace for the North in the second game.

Wacholder had eight kills and El Toro’s Marta Bickert added six for the South.

Unlike the South girls, the South boys took control in the first game of their match.

Beebe, Capistrano Valley’s Ryan Benn and Dana Hills’ Travis Barr each had five kills as the South scored the final five points of the game. Beebe finished with nine kills and Barr added eight for the match.

Marina’s John Mull took control late in the second game. With the North trailing, 11-10, Mull had a kill and a block to spark a 5-0 run that evened the match at a game apiece.

Taylor had five kills in the third game as the North rallied from a 5-0 deficit by scoring 13 consecutive points.

The all-star game capped an outstanding prep career for Taylor, a 6-foot-4 outside hitter who averaged 24 kills a match this season. He led Huntington Beach to its second Sunset League title in three years.

He committed to UCLA after turning down offers from USC, Cal State Northridge and NCAA champion Cal State Long Beach.