Sierra Canyon Girls Volleyball Into Div. 1 Semifinals Again


Sierra Canyon Girls Volleyball Advances to Div. 1 Semifinals Again

 

By Jacob H. Pollon

Sierra Canyon Athletics Dept. Staff Writer

 

The Sierra Canyon girls volleyball team acted like Brittany Spears Wednesday night in a Div. I quarterfinal playoff match.

“Oops, I did it again.”

The Trailblazers outlasted Foothill of Santa Ana 25-16, 7-22, 25-22, 25-20 to advance to the semifinals for the second consecutive year.

“Oops, I did it again.”

Sierra Canyon will get another chance to reach the championship match when it takes on top-seeded Redondo (35-3) at 6 p.m. Saturday in the South Bay.

Redondo is ranked No. 10 in the country and has several Div. 1 recruits.

“Another great challenge for our program,” Sierra Canyon coach Stefanie Wigfall said. “We have some experience now. Last year was completely new to us. We know more now. We need to execute.”

Long Beach St.-bound Jaylen Jordan led the Trailblazers with 17 kills and junior setter Taylor Simpson had 35 assists. Simpson is committed to Colorado. Laina Bolton contributed 23 digs.

Sierra Canyon had only one hiccup, albeit a troubling one it cannot afford Saturday. After looking good in the first set win, Sierra Canyon (34-2) let its guard down and was dominated in the second set, scoring only seven points. Foothill raced out to a 10-1 lead that grew to 17-3 and 21-5.

“That was just like forget about it and move on to the third set,” Wigfall said. “We don’t want that to happen, but you just have to move on.”

There was a tiny sense of worry in the all-important third set when Foothill took a 4-1 lead and had momentum. However, Sierra Canyon responded with a 7-1 run, went on to win the set and closed it out in the fourth. Simpson had consecutive aces on balls that clipped the net.

Jaida Sione, a rising freshman prospect, chipped in eight kills.

“Jaida stepped up and performed,” Wigfall said. “We run stuff for her and she came through. She has been consistent all year.”