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2008

GET UP - Quartz Hill High School's Emily Ottinger had 13 kills in the Rebels' three-set victory over Santa Maria St. Joseph Thursday night. Quartz Hill will host Granite Hills Saturday night in the Southern Section Division III-AA quarterfinals. JOANNA GARCÍA/Valley Press

Rebels find way to keep season alive

By ERIC BACA
Valley Press Staff Writer

In its second straight home game, Quartz Hill defeated visiting St. Joseph of Santa Maria, 25-10, 25-21, 25-15.

"After that first game, we got really comfortable," Rebels senior Taylor Bridge said. "We lost it a little bit in the second game, but we still came back and won."

As had been the case for most of the season, superior passing from Nicole Tracy led to big offensive numbers for the Rebels.

Also, like throughout the season, it came from multiple sources.

Kara Sherrard led all hitters with 19 kills, while sophomore Emily Ottinger was second with 13. Adding an additional boost was Bridge, who totaled six kills of her own.

"From what I have seen, we have two of the best outside hitters," Rebels coach Larry Vocke said. "Usually in a rotation you have a weak side, but my girls can put the ball away, which makes it a lot easier."

Making it look easy is what the Rebels did in the first set, rushing to a 13-3 advantage.

Three-straight kills - one each by Sherrard, Bridge and Ottinger - pushed the Rebels to a 23-9 lead. Margaret Austin scored the final two points of the set, giving the Rebels early momentum.

Momentarily manifesting itself in the second set was a familiar season-long concern for the Rebels. After a dominant performance in the initial set, the Rebels slowed down their pace in the subsequent frames.

"It's just a mental breakdown," Vocke said. "We didn't carry over that adrenaline. Once they lost it, it took forever to get it going again."

Not until the middle of the second set were the Rebels able to pull away from St. Joseph. A timely ace by Sherrard, who tallied four overall, combined with three-straight scores by Ottinger, and the Rebels closed out the only contested set of the match.

"It's like I've said all year, they always find a way to win," Vocke said.

Ottinger noted that while the team sagged a bit, the Rebels ability to rebound toward the end, suggests a certain maturity level.

"We fell apart for a little bit," Ottinger said. "Overall, we are just making silly mistakes that we shouldn't be making."

Despite sweeping their second straight playoff game, Ottinger said that she appreciated the heightened competitiveness that the playoffs have offered.

"Every time we play a team it helps us," Ottinger said.

The third set seemed as if it would duplicate the second's somewhat drawn-out finish. After both teams pushed to a 10-10 tie, the Rebels ran out on a 15-5 run to cap their second quarterfinals appearance in as many years.

"This team, I think, is actually better than last year's," said Bridge, a member of the Rebels semifinals team from a year ago."

Having already won the coin flip, the Rebels will host their third straight playoff game Saturday against the Apple Valley-based team Granite Hills, who beat Charter Oaks.

"It's not always good (to have home games)," Vocke said. "You have to learn how to win on the road, too."