Joyce Cruz

School: Rosary High

Sport: Tennis

Position: No. 1 singles

Class: Sophomore

Cruz, who has lost only one set in Angelus League play this season, led Rosary to victories against its two toughest league opponents, which moved the Royals into first place. Tuesday, Cruz won, 6-4, 6-0, 6-4, and Rosary defeated Santa Margarita, 11-7. Thursday, she won, 6-1, 6-0, 6-0, in a victory over Mater Dei. The Monarchs had defeated Rosary, 10-8, in the teams’ first meeting of the season when Mater Dei’s No. 1 singles player, Erika Asmuss, who is Cruz’s friend and doubles partner in age-group competition, defeated Cruz, 6-4. Cruz said she was ready for Thursday’s rematch, but Asmuss played doubles because of a hamstring injury that slowed her. Cruz easily defeated Asmuss’ replacement and the rest of her competition, and Rosary’s No. 2 singles player, Mandy Gomez, also swept her sets as the Royals won on games, 77-70, after the match ended in a 9-9 tie. “We were really ready for them,” Cruz said. The victory over Mater Dei, the second-ranked team in the Southern Section 2-A Division, gave the third-ranked Royals (13-3, 4-1 in the league), a half-game lead over second-place Santa Margarita (3-1 in league). Santa Margarita and Rosary play again Nov. 1.

Other top performers:

* Marni Hichborn, who helped El Modena’s volleyball team remain undefeated by winning two Century League matches, defeating Orange in three games Tuesday and Foothill in four Thursday.

* Martha Pinto, a Katella cross-country runner who ran three miles in 17 minutes 44 seconds to finished third in the individual sweepstakes race at the Mt. San Antonio Invitational Saturday.

* Tracy Schriber and Lara Carlsen, who had nine and eight kills, respectively, to lead Corona del Mar’s volleyball team to a three-game victory over Laguna Beach Saturday.

* Shelley Taylor, who ran 17:37, the fastest time of the day for a county runner, to finish second and lead Edison to the team title of the individual sweepstakes race at the Mt. San Antonio Invitational Saturday.