Laguna Beach reaches volleyball semifinals

Paulette Grand Pre put up 33 digs and 19 kills to lead Laguna Beach to a four-game victory against No. 4 El Dorado, 25-22, 20-25, 25-16, 25-20, in the quarterfinals of the CIF-SS Division I-A girls volleyball playoffs Saturday night at El Dorado High.

Grand Pre's efforts offset the 19 kills registered by El Dorado's Andrea McHugh and helped the Breakers (17-9) reach the semifinals, where top-seeded Dos Pueblos of Goleta awaits.

"El Dorado is a good team," Breakers coach Lance Stewart said. "They are well-coached and they fought real hard."

The Golden Hawks (28-8) lost in last year's quarterfinals to Laguna Beach, and like last season, were ranked ahead of the Breakers in the division poll entering the playoffs. El Dorado was ranked No. 4, while the Breakers were No. 5.

After splitting the opening game, Laguna Beach gained control late in Game 3 and never let up. Tied at 13, the Breakers built a 20-14 margin before closing it out. The momentum carried to Game 4, where Laguna Beach pushed out to 12-6 start.

El Dorado responded with a late run and pulled to 20-19, forcing a Laguna Beach timeout. However, the Breakers scored the next five points to set up match point.

"They passed better than us," El Dorado coach Craig Tefertiller said. "Our success is based on our passing and serving.

"The girls hung tough this season. They did a great job."

In other matches:

In Division I-A:

Huntington Beach 3, Marymount 2: Trailing 11-6 in Game 5, the Oilers staged a dramatic rally and upset third-seeded Marymount on the road, 25-20, 14-25, 25-20, 19-25, 15-13, to reach the semifinals. Andrea Streips recorded 11 kills and 14 digs and Savannah Clark had 22 digs.

Dos Pueblos 3, El Toro 0: Christina Bauch recorded 11 kills, but it wasn't enough to overcome the sweep, 25-21, 25-13, 25-22.

In Division I-AA:

Santa Margarita 3, Long Beach Wilson 1: The Eagles pulled off the road upset against the fourth-seeded Bears in four games, 25-16, 25-22, 21-25, 25-22, to advance to the semifinals.

Newport Harbor 3, Long Beach Poly 1: Kirby Burnham and Katey Thompson combined for 42 kills as the top-seeded Sailors downed the Jackrabbits in four games, 25-16, 25-15, 20-25, 25-15, and will face Santa Margarita in the semifinals.

In Division II-AA:

Corona del Mar 3, Santiago of Corona 0: The second-seeded Sea Kings breezed into the semifinals with the sweep, 25-19, 25-21, 25-23, at home. Madison Smith dished out 32 assists and nine digs. Morgan Boukather had a team-high 10 kills.

In Division II-A:

Troy 3, Cypress 0: The Warriors ended the Centurions playoff run with a sweep, 25-15, 25-13, 25-13. Jacquie Brice had 32 assists.