MARK MOLINA | Staff Writer
SANTA MARIA — Once the Santa Maria Lady Cougars grasped the momentum of their match against district foe Lasara, they didn’t look back.
However, that didn’t take long at all as the Lady Cougars took a 10-0 lead in the match’s first game en route to a 3-0 sweep of Lasara Lady Lions (25-10, 25-15, 25-14) Tuesday night at Santa Maria High School.
Santa Maria head coach Sofia Garcia spoke of earning points and her team did just that, dominating from the service line and limiting mistakes.
“The consistency in our serves tonight was big. Vanessa Hinojosa served up about 12 points in the beginning for us,” Garcia said. “I preach to our girls that we have to play a smarter game than our opponents. I really feel like this group is focused as a team.
“We’re just trying to keep the momentum going as we get going with the second round of district.”
The Lady Cougars are now 5-0 in District 32-2A play with the win.
In the first game, Hinojosa was dominant from the service line, racking up a few aces in the process and helping the Lady Cougars build their early lead.
In the second, Lasara kept pace and took a brief 6-4 lead, but a 21-9 run to end the game deflated the Lady Lion sail.
“We let up a bit and our focus was off,” Garcia said. “Lasara is a scrappy team and that kind of team is dangerous.”
The Lady Cougars led the second game by as many as 15 points.
They never led again and trailed the entire third game.
BIG MATCH COMING: The Lady Cougars maintain their top spot in the district, but if they wish to stay there alone, they will have to beat San Perlita this Saturday is a big district matchup.
The Lady Trojans are 4-1 after dismissing La Villa Tuesday in three games 25-18, 25-16, 25-13.
Like the Lady Cougars, the Lady Trojans had their minor slump en route to a sweep of their own.
“We did well in the first two sets and had good scores tonight, but we relaxed a bit in the third game, which caused us to fall behind,” San Perlita head coach Maricelda Suarez said. “Once we got our momentum back, we pulled through thanks to our consistent serves from Viviana Razo.”
San Perlita hosts Santa Maria Saturday morning at 11 a.m.
The Lady Cougars won the first match in five games two weeks ago and are expecting a solid San Perlita team, but with the unbeaten record, the Lady Cougars won’t play with pressure.
“We want to be in a good situation like this so we can be relaxed and not think of this as a must-win game,” Garcia said. “We feel confident, but we know that (San Perlita) is a tough team.
“We feel good and we just want to flow with our momentum.”