The hugs and celebratory high-fives were put on hold after the final set was over, mainly because some math was needed to determine the afternoon’s victor.
Once the pencils and scratch paper were finally put to the side, Santa Margarita’s squad rejoiced, knowing it had earned the victory and seized early control of what’s sure to be a tight Trinity League race.
Trailing by two sets headed into the decisive third round of Tuesday’s league opener, the eighth-ranked Eagles notched four wins down the stretch to steal a 9-9 victory over No. 5 JSerra by way of games, 71-62.
While Santa Margarita (2-4, 1-0) remained unbeaten against the Lions (7-2, 0-1) since the Trinity League’s inception, the eight-time defending league champs fully understood the importance of Tuesday’s match and topping the team that has pushed them the most in recent memory.
“We graduated so many girls who had the experience of playing in those matches, so we are very, very young,” Eagles coach Eric Michaut explained. “We decided to change the lineup, and we knew that the last round would be our strongest rotation. So it was a matter of winning the maximum amount of games.”
JSerra jumped out to a 4-2 lead after the first round, highlighted by Jadie Acidera’s 6-0 win over Katie Chang. The Lions top singles player dominated throughout the afternoon, adding 6-0 and 6-1 victories over Kristina Breisacher and Danya Fatehi, respectively.
The Lions, though, only mustered those three points from its singles lineup, as the Eagles trio each went 2-1.
Having won only one doubles sets in the first two rounds, the Maddie Gehrich–Caroline Harris pair and the Aleyeh Roknaldin–Tatum Cisakowski duo capped their day with crucial third-round victories that tied the score at 9-9, ultimately giving Santa Margarita the nod.
“That’s why play a very, very tough preseason and play everybody in the top six,” Michaut added, referencing Santa Margarita’s 0-4 start. “Maybe we don’t win those matches, but in the long term that made us confident enough to go through tough matches when we have a chance to win them.”
The two teams will faceoff again Oct. 8.
In nonleague:
Peninsula of Palos Verdes 12, No. 2 Corona del Mar 6: The Sea Kings dropped their first match of the season to the two-time defending CIF-SS Division 1 champs. CdM held a 5-4 advantage in doubles sets, but only Jasie Dunk was able to record a singles victory against Peninsula.
Contact the writer: kconnolly@ocregister.com
