HUNTINGTON BEACH – With one phone call, the Santa Margarita girls volleyball team went from spending the afternoon in practice to playing at night in the finals of the Dave Mohs tournament.
“The whole program had started practice,” Santa Margarita coach Katy Daly said, recalling what happened when officials for the Mohs tournament contacted the Eagles with a last-minute invitation. “… (Our athletic director) asked if we wanted to play. I turned and asked (the team) and they lost it, they were like yeah.”
The Eagles put up a fight but Lakewood pulled away for a 29-27, 25-22 victory Monday night in the tournament’s Division 1 final at Edison High.
The Eagles wound up in the final because Mater Dei was forced to forfeit three victories in the tournament because it used an ineligible player. The Monarchs had defeated Santa Margarita in the semifinals Saturday.
In a statement released by the school, Mater Dei said it would forfeit three of its victories between Sept. 5 and Sept. 13 (Tesoro, JSerra and Santa Margarita). The reason for the forfeits, the school said, involved a player who transfered from Laguna Beach to Mater Dei.
Mater Dei apparently believed the player had met the requirements to be cleared to play. But, the school said Monday in a statement, “Subsequently, new information has been received. As a result, of this new information, CIF has declared the student-athlete ineligible at this time.”
With a second shot at the title, the Eagles had their sights set on an upset. In the first set, they served for set point at 26-25, but the Lancers fought back to take the set.
In the second set, the Eagles led 19-16 on a kill from Meghan McClure, forcing the Lancers to take a timeout. Lakewood stormed back to tie the set at 19-19. Later, with the score 22-22, the Lancers scored the final three points for the title.
“We had control of the match, but it was our errors that were killing us,” Daly said. “I think it is maturity of playing in these environments. That’s why I’m stoked to be here and the girls were too.
“I’m proud of them. We were told three hours before the match and for them to come out and battle like this, I have to be proud of them.”
McClure, Brooke Hertel and Ashley Campbell earned all-tournament honors for the Eagles.
In the Division 2 final:
St. Margaret’s 2, Woodbridge 1: After dropping the first set, the Tartans rallied to win their second consecutive tournament, 23-25, 25-20, 17-15. Emily Miller was selected tournament MVP. She had 14 kills. Peighton McRobie added 12 and Gabby Benck had six.
Contact the writer: dcalhoun@ocregister.com