Tesoro tops Costa Mesa in three

Bryce Alderton

When Allison Salladin began coaching girls volleyball at Costa

Mesa High last season, several of the Mustangs’ players on the court

Thursday night in the school’s first CIF girls volleyball appearance

in five seasons hadn’t even touched a volleyball. How far they’ve

come.

The Mustangs (13-3, 12-0 in the Golden West League) dropped a

first-round CIF Southern Section Division III-A match to Tesoro

(16-7), 15-8, 15-6, 15-4, at Costa Mesa High, but even with the loss,

Salladin praised a team she coached to an undefeated season in the

Golden West League, the first time a Mesa girls volleyball team won

league.

“This is the first CIF match any of these girls have ever played

in,” Salladin said. “They were ready to play. We knew (Tesoro) had

strong hitters that could put the ball down and we practiced for it

all week. I told them win or lose, go home tonight knowing you played

your best and you lost to a good team. Tesoro was absolutely the best

team we’ve faced all year.”

The Titans’ duo of middle blocker Morgan Beck and Jenne Blackburn

accounted for 12 and 16 kills, respectively, as Tesoro withstood a

Mesa charge in the first game before settling down to dominate play

at the net the final two games.

Jenny Sparks (12 assists) and Jackie Havens (eight assists) fed

Mesa’s Sharon Day for nine kills and Emily Abbott knocked six kills

with Devin Denman adding five kills. Havens led the Mustangs with

three service aces and Kristen Bagwell served one ace.

Denman, Bagwell, Day, Abbott and Amy Langmos are seniors, but

Salladin believes next year’s team can be just as good as this

season’s installment.

“Our (junior varsity team) went 9-3,” Salladin said. “I’m not

nervous that next year’s team will be worse than this year’s team.

I’d like to be at Costa Mesa for a few more years. Coaching

consistency makes a program successful.”

Elsewhere in the CIF Playoffs Thursday:

Top-seeded Newport Harbor was a 15-4, 15-4, 15-2 winner over Division II-AA foe Sultana, at Newport.

Kristin McClune had 17 kills and two aces, Lauren Miller had 12

kills, Shelley Langford seven kills, Alyson Jennings six kills and

Kiley Hall five kills. Kellie King (17 assists) and Jordan Carmack

(12 assists) shared setting duties.

The Sailors were without freshman standout Bryana Carey, who is

lost for the balance of the season with a broken finger.

Newport plays the La Mirada-Cathedral City winner Saturday night.

Corona del Mar High’s third-seeded Sea Kings used everyone

throughout in a prolonged 15-11, 15-9, 15-5 victory over visiting

Northview in Division III-A play.

Britta Nielsen had eight kills and Jordan Smith and Lindsay Ensign

each had five kills.

CdM meets Santa Ynez in Saturday’s quarterfinals at a site to be

determined by coin flip today.