SIDE OUT GIRLS' PREP VOLLEYBALL NEWS AND FEATURES FROM AROUND THE SAN FERNANDO VALLEY ... AND BEYOND.Byline: Erik Boal GETTING DEFENSIVE The libero Libero can refer to:
Westlake's Cathy Quilico, La Reina La Reina (Spanish: "The queen") is a commune of Chile located in Santiago Province, Santiago Metropolitan Region. It consistently ranks in the top five communes with the best quality of life in the Metropolitan Region. of Thousand Oaks' Carolyn Rumer, Oak Park's Megan Rauch, Moorpark's Kristin Lombardo and Louisville of Woodland Hills' Christina Biernat are among the Southern Section leaders in digs. At Flintridge Sacred Heart The Sacred Heart is a religious devotion to Jesus' physical heart as the representation of the divine love for humanity This devotion is predominantly used in the Roman Catholic Church and also used in the Anglican Church. of La Canada Flintridge, Shelli Orlandini has relied on not one, but four defenders to cover the back row. Although junior Aly Crea is the Tologs' libero, Orlandini relies equally on seniors Veronica Montes mon·tes n. Plural of mons. and Sarah Polich and junior Tina Orlandini, her niece. ``Most coaches worry about finding one or two girls who can play back row, so when you have four, that's not exactly a bad thing,'' Shelli Orlandini said. ``Plus, they all bring something different to the court.'' Crea sees the most time as libero, but there are certain rotations in which Montes, Tina Orlandini and Polich are on the court at the same time. Orlandini is the most effective server of the group, Montes shares setting duties with sophomore Sam Orlandini - Shelli's daughter - and Polich is one of the area's best defensive specialists. Junior outside hitter Julie Herrera has led the Tologs - ranked No. 2 in Southern Section Div. IV-AA - in digs in league competition, averaging more than 10 per match. Crea, Montes, Orlandini and Polich are combining to average 22 digs in their league matches. ``Each one of them understands they have a role,'' Shelli Orlandini said. ``And they're all doing a great job.'' THE DEBATE BEGINS Verdugo Hills of Tujunga coach Will Reinhart has broken down every scenario, analyzed all the pros and cons pros and cons Noun, pl the advantages and disadvantages of a situation [Latin pro for + con(tra) against] , and done all the lobbying possible. Now the fate of his team, as well as Narbonne of Harbor City and Taft of Woodland Hills, is in the hands of the City Section seeding committee. When playoff play·off also play-off n. Sports 1. A final game or series of games played to break a tie. 2. A series of games played to determine a championship. Noun 1. pairings are determined next week, Reinhart knows one thing is certain: San Pedro will be the No. 1 seed. After that, the Dons' coach believes it's anyone's guess how the other three teams will be placed in the top four. Reinhart was hoping Verdugo Hills (17-1) could improve its resume at Saturday's Sylmar tournament. The Dons went undefeated in pool play and defeated Littlerock in the quarterfinals, but they lost 25-21 to Venice in the semifinals, the team's second tournament setback to the Gondoliers since sweeping them in a nonleague match Sept. 19. ``I don't feel like we hurt ourselves,'' Reinhart said. ``We had a chance to help ourselves, and we didn't take advantage. We didn't come here to win our pool, we came here to win the tournament.'' Because Verdugo Hills didn't play Taft, Reinhart doesn't have any basis for a debate against the Toreadors, other than comparing results against common opponents. The Dons split two games with Narbonne in the Venice tournament but outpointed the Gauchos. One factor that is working against Verdugo Hills is that the West Valley and Marine leagues have traditionally received more respect from the committee than the Sunset Six. ``I'm going to make my case and lobby as hard as I can for why we should be up there,'' Reinhart said. ``After that, it's out of my hands.'' GRAND CANYON Grand Canyon, great gorge of the Colorado River, one of the natural wonders of the world; c.1 mi (1.6 km) deep, from 4 to 18 mi (6.4–29 km) wide, and 217 mi (349 km) long, NW Ariz. Since its four-game Foothill League loss Oct. 13 to Valencia, Canyon of Canyon Country has been on a roll, knocking off Saugus in four games Tuesday to move into a tie for second place. The Cowboys, who play host today to Hart of Newhall, appear to be finding their rhythm at the right time, winning the Sylmar tournament for the second consecutive year Saturday. Canyon capped a perfect 11-game run with a 25-21 victory over Venice in the championship, giving the Cowboys three titles in the past five seasons at the 30-team, one-day event one-day event a contraction of the three-day event but like that contest is aimed at selecting the best all-round horse and rider. The events usually contested are show-jumping, dressage and cross-country. . ``We've been building (since that loss to Valencia),'' first-year coach Brian Ingino said. ``We beat Hart (in five games), we took a game off Valencia, so we're definitely on an upswing Upswing An upward turn in a security's price after a period of falling prices. . Our whole, entire motivation right now is (the Southern Section Div. I-A playoffs).'' Senior setter setter: see sporting dog. setter Any of three breeds derived from a medieval hunting dog that would set (lie down) when it found birds so that it and the birds could be covered with a net. Setters have long hair on the ears, chest, legs, and tail. Janalee Mays has kept opposing blockers off balance by spreading the ball around to hitters Ashley Clark, Serene Cossairt and Kassie Faulkner. Natalie Perrotta's play on defense also has been critical. PLAYOFF PREPARATION For the first time this season, the area's top two teams, Flintridge Sacred Heart of La Canada Flintridge and Valencia, could be in the same venue - Saturday at the Redondo Union of Redondo Beach Redondo Beach (rĭdŏn`dō), city (1990 pop. 60,167), Los Angeles co., S Calif., on the Pacific Ocean; inc. 1892. Once a commercial port for Los Angeles, it is a residential and resort city with a protected harbor and an excellent marina. Power Classic. Valencia is seeded fourth in the 32-team tournament and Flintridge Sacred Heart is sixth. Littlerock and Taft of Woodland Hills are also competing. Teams must finish among the top two in four-team pools Friday to advance to the Saturday's Gold Division at Redondo Union. Valencia is paired with New Roads of Santa Monica Santa Monica (săn`tə mŏn`ĭkə), city (1990 pop. 86,905), Los Angeles co., S Calif., on Santa Monica Bay; inc. 1886. Tourism and retailing are important, and the city has motion-picture, biotechnology, and software industries. , Pomona and pool host West Torrance. Flintridge Sacred Heart will face Vista, Narbonne of Harbor City and St. Mary's of Inglewood at Lawndale High. Both teams expect to make deep runs in the upcoming Southern Section playoffs, which is why they scheduled a competitive tournament before the final week of the regular season. ``That was exactly the plan,'' said Valencia coach Ray Sanchez, whose team is riding a nine-match winning streak Noun 1. winning streak - a streak of wins streak, run - an unbroken series of events; "had a streak of bad luck"; "Nicklaus had a run of birdies" . ``We haven't had anyone really challenge us since the Dave Mohs tournament (in Huntington Beach Huntington Beach, city (1990 pop. 181,519), Orange co., S Calif., on the Pacific coast, across from Santa Catalina Island, in an oil-producing area; inc. 1909. It manufactures aerospace vehicles, aircraft parts, optical instruments, and heat transfer equipment. ) or (a four-game loss to) Lakewood (in September). We've made some changes since then and now we want to put ourselves in a really tough, competitive mindset mind·set or mind-set n. 1. A fixed mental attitude or disposition that predetermines a person's responses to and interpretations of situations. 2. An inclination or a habit. to see the adjustments we've made and how they stack up against great teams on the other side of the net.'' After third-place finishes Noun 1. third-place finish - a finish in third place (as in a race) finish - designated event that concludes a contest (especially a race); "excitement grew as the finish neared"; "my horse was several lengths behind at the finish"; "the winner is the team with the in tournaments at Gahr of Cerritos and Royal of Simi Valley Simi Valley (sē`mē, sĭm`ē), city (1990 pop. 100,217), Ventura co., SW Calif. in an oil, fruit, and farm region; laid out 1887, inc. 1969. , Flintridge Sacred Heart coach Shelli Orlandini said a trip to the final four Saturday would be a big confidence boost entering Tuesday's Mission League showdown with Harvard-Westlake of Studio City. ``If we can get to the semifinals here, I would be impressed,'' Orlandini said. ``We just need to get back to playing some really good, competitive volleyball to get us ready for the playoffs.'' CAPTION(S): photo, 2 boxes Photo: From left, Aly Crea, Veronica Montes, Sarah Polich and Tina Orlandini have excelled defensively for the Flintridge Sacred Heart of La Canada Flintridge girls' volleyball team. David Sprague/Staff Photographer Box: (1) TOP 10 (2) SEVEN-DAY FORECAST |
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