SOUTHERN SECTION DIVISION II VOLLEYBALL : Huntington Beach Misses Opportunities, Loses

What could have been a three-game sweep for the Huntington Beach girls’ volleyball team, ended in a five-game loss to Torrance Bishop Montgomery Thursday night in the Southern Section Division II semifinals.

Huntington Beach blew two game points in the first game and were outscored 9-0 in the fifth game as Bishop Montgomery rallied for a 17-15, 11-15, 10-15, 15-6, 15-9 victory at West Torrance High.

The unseeded Knights (15-3) advanced to Saturday night’s finals at Cerritos College against unseeded Sunny Hills.

Huntington Beach (14-6) still has hopes of qualifying for the Division II regional playoffs. Pairings will be announced Sunday.

“We definitely deserve to go,” Huntington Beach Co-Coach Cammy Ciarelli said. “When we play well, we play very well.”

At times Thursday night, the Oilers did just that. But at other times, they struggled to maintain momentum.

The Oilers built a 15-14 lead in the first game, but Bishop Montgomery fought off game points and scored three consecutive points for a 17-15 victory.

“Communication hurt us in both the first and fifth games,” Ciarelli said. “We had people trying to play each other’s positions.

Huntington Beach rallied from a 10-4 deficit in the second game, relying on strong serving from freshman Melissa Wendt. She served six consecutive points, including an ace as Huntington Beach tied the score and later took the lead for good.

The Oilers led, 8-7, in the third game. But two kills and an ace by Wendt keyed a 5-0 Huntington Beach run that put the game out of reach.

In the fourth game, Bishop Montgomery, led by senior Miya Malauulu’s nine kills, took 9-1 and 13-4 leads on the way to an easy victory.

Huntington Beach couldn’t stop Malauulu again in the fifth game. She had eight kills and sparked a 9-0 Bishop Montgomery streak that broke a 5-5 tie. Huntington Beach cut the deficit to 14-9, but Malauulu ended the match with a cross-court kill.

Malauulu finished with a match-high 31 kills and four aces. Wendt had 23 kills, four blocks and three aces for Huntington Beach, making its first playoff appearance since ’88.