Saugus girls’ volleyball continues to thrive off clean, tight defense.
The Centurions swept the hosting Aliso Niguel Wolverines on Saturday, putting Saugus into the CIF Division 2 quarterfinals.
Saugus won the match, 25-20, 25-23, 25-18, with its blocking touching nearly every opposing ball while the passers racked up 70 digs.
“Defense was the key in this one,” Saugus coach Zach Ambrose said in a phone interview. “They just really did a good job reading the hitters and putting themselves in a position to make a play on the ball. That really kept us with them, until we were able to get our little spurts and runs with serving.”
Centurions libero Gabriela Cascione led the way with 23 digs and continues to cover what seems to be the entire back row.
“We kind of let her go on her side and we’ll over block on the other side,” Ambrose said. “So they have a choice, they can hit to her, or they can hit into the block. Some teams choose to challenge the block, and that’s where we’ll pick up a few block points. Others will try to challenge Gabby and she picks up a lot of those balls.”
Cascione was also one of three Centurions to register multiple aces.
Saugus (40-1) controlled its own tempo and continued to hit efficiently. Senior Leila Ballard tallied up 18 kills along with 11 digs and a pair of blocks.
“Leila especially has really stepped up her game going into playoffs, hitting with confidence,” Ambrose said. “Even when it’s not an ideal situation, she’s developed this sense of knowing where to put the ball to either score a point or force the other team to have to make a difficult play.”
Blocking was key in slowing down a strong Aliso Niguel team (21-10) with no clear weaknesses. Middle blocker Katelyn Nelson led the way in that department with three stuffs while Aiden Jacobson had two.
“We had a lot of positive touches off the block, not as many for points but we blocked a lot where they picked it up and ended up getting either a free ball or a down ball,” Ambrose said. “As the playoffs progress, we’re not going to really get that many blocks for points. It’s really about funneling it to the defense and then letting them make the play behind it.”
The win puts Saugus back in the CIF quarterfinals and into the regional state tournament for the first time in two years. The top eight teams in the CIF Southern Section Division 2 bracket get the invite and Saugus has humbly accepted.
For now, the Centurions are focused on another CIF win as the team returns home to host the Santa Margarita Eagles, a battle-tested group from the Trinity League.
Saugus will need to slow down Santa Margarita outside hitter Ireland Real, who nearly hit over 400 kills in the regular season, and opposite Memphis Burnett, who had just under 300.
Ambrose has been pleased with his team’s ability to claw out wins efficiently but knows Wednesday’s match will be one of the toughest battles this season.
“We just keep finding ways to play better as the competition gets tougher, and it’ll get tougher again Wednesday,” Ambrose said. “(Santa Margarita) is a really good team, probably one of the toughest games we’ve had all year. Matchup wise, they’re big, they’re strong and they have great ball control. It’s just going to come down to who executes better.”
The Centurions are elated to return home to host the Eagles, who will make the two-hour drive up on Wednesday for a 6 p.m. match at Saugus High School.
“They’re more excited about the fact that they get to be home again,” Ambrose said. “There’s a big advantage because Santa Margarita is even farther than Aliso Niguel. We don’t have to make that trip, and they do. So hopefully we take advantage of that early and kind of get a jump on them because we’ll be in our normal routine.”
