Mira Costa girls volleyball coach Lisa Zimmerman doesn’t believe in easing into a season. Ranked No. 7 in the CIF Southern Section Division 1-AA poll, her Mustang squad is facing the top three ranked teams in the division in its first three games.
A true litmus test to be sure, but the high level of competition will help Zimmerman not only assess her players, but provide a view of the details her squad must improve on. The schedule is already paying dividends.
After an opening-match four-set road loss to top-ranked Los Alamitos, Mira Costa rebounded Thursday to easily sweep No. 3 Edison 25-15, 25-13, 26-24 in the Mustang’s home opener.
Mira Costa’s stellar defense allowed Zimmerman to insert many substitute players, a rarity at this time of the season.
Grayce Campbell led the Mustang offense with 10 kills and added nine digs while Lexi Millington recorded eight kills in the win.
Libero Carley Muller had 26 digs, Skylar Caputo added 12 digs and Corie Bain contributed nine digs for the Mustangs.
“I was pleased with our team’s energy and focus against Edison,” Zimmerman said. “We bounced back from our defeat last week and focused on taking care of our side of the net by elevating our team defense. We were able to use a number of different players and still keep within our system.”
Mira Costa will travel to take on No. 2 Marymount in a 4:45 p.m. contest on Tuesday in a final preparation before the Mustangs head to Las Vegas for the prestigious Durango Fall Classic Sept.14-15.
“The tough Marymount team will help get us ready for our weekend tourney at Durango where some of the country’s best high school teams compete,” Zimmerman said.
Mira Costa will be joined by Redondo, Palos Verdes and South Torrance representatives of the South Bay in the 48-team Durango tournament which includes teams from seven states and Canada.
The competition will include 14 teams ranked in the top ten in the CIF Southern Section including eight of the top ten schools in Division 1-AA.
Redondo dropped its season opener with a 25-23, 25-18, 25-18 loss to Harvard-Westlake (No. 8 in Division 1-A).
Skylar Dykstra led the Sea Hawks with eight kills; Brianna Lanktree added six kills and Abril Bustamante recorded four kills in the defeat.
