Los Alamitos girls volleyball team fought back from a big deficit, but came up just short, in a CIF-SS Division 1AA playoff game on Thursday at Los Alamitos High.
The Griffins took the first set, but the third-seeded Mustangs rallied to win the match, 26-28, 25-17, 25-13, 27-25, to advance to the quarterfinals. Los Alamitos had entered the playoffs as the third place team out of the Sunset League and had defeated Moore League No. 1 team Lakewood in the first round on the road.
Against Mira Costa, the Griffins carried the momentum into the first set, but after taking that set, the Mustangs grabbed the advantage in set two. The pivotal third set also started with the Mustangs on a run that had them leading 7-0 before the Griffins could get their bearings.
But after losing the third set and again falling behind in the fourth, the Griffins refused to give in. They trailed 7-2 before beginning to chip away at the Mustang lead.
“They had every reason to quit and they kept fighting and fighting and kept chipping away,” Huber said.
When setter Julia Patterson made a block for a point, the Mustang lead was cut to 12-9. A Mira Costa misplay made it 12-10, but the Mustangs regrouped to extend their lead to 17-11. From there the Griffins mounted another rally Taylor Cochrane and Natalie Rojes had consecutive kills that cut the Mustang lead to 19-16.
Later, Mira Costa led 22-19, but the Griffins went on a 4-0 run to take the lead. A net violation on Mira Costa made it 22-20 and consecutive ace serves by Patterson tied the set at 22-22. The Griffins would take the lead, 23-22 on a Mustang hit that sailed long.
Mira Costa would get to set point, 24-23, but Cochrane answered with a kill down the line to tie it at 24-24. However, the Mustangs would eventually close out the match, after a Los Al kill attempt sailed long. Still, Huber had no complaints after his team’s effort.
“To get down like we did and to still have a chance, I’m really proud of the way they fought,” Huber said.
After taking third in the Sunset League, the Griffins (19-12) were able to defeat Moore League co-champion Lakewood, 25-20, 26-24, 22-25, 25-15, in the first round.
Patterson led the Griffin attack with 34 assists and six ace serves. Cochrane led the team with 11 kills, sophomore Mackenzie Smith had eight kills and senior Sarah Tuioti-Mariner added seven kills. It had been an up and down season for the Griffins, but Huber was pleased with the way they dealt with the challenge.
“To have the showing that they did, especially emotionally, showed a lot about their character, not volleyball-wise but the type of kids that they are,” Huber said.