HIGH SCHOOL VOLLEYBALL : Ventura Wins 2nd Title in as Many Weeks

It took Ventura High 17 years to win its first girls’ volleyball tournament, but the Cougars needed only a week to win their next title as they stopped Canyon, 15-7, in the final of the Calabasas tournament on Saturday.

Led by the booming serves of Amy Hudson and the powerful spiking of Jesaca Lepper, the Cougars picked up where they left off in last week’s Ventura invitational.

Hudson, a 5-foot-3 1/2 senior defensive specialist, accounted for 11 points from the service line--including seven in a row that gave the Cougars a 13-4 advantage. Lepper added four kills and three blocks in the final to earn most valuable player honors for the second week in a row.

“A lot of people underestimated us,” Hudson said. “It feels good to be the underdog and to come out above everyone else.”

Ventura struggled at times during pool play, splitting two-game matches with Saugus and L.A. Baptist. But the play of Lepper on the front line and Hudson defensively sparked the Cougars out of their lethargy.

But once the Cougars got out of pool play, they dominated, building early leads to defeat University, 15-8, and La Mirada, 15-9, en route to the final.

Canyon took a much tougher route to the championship match after going undefeated in pool play.

Trailing Foothill League rival Saugus, 6-5, in the quarterfinals, the Cowboys rebounded behind the hitting of Darcy Frandsen to outscore the Centurions, 10-1, the rest of the way.

In a semifinal against L.A. Baptist, Canyon came back from a 12-0 deficit to win. Middle blocker Gina Sanchez led the comeback with her hitting, serving and intimidating net play.

L.A. Baptist rebounded to beat La Mirada, 15-3, in the third-place match.