Capistrano Valley Christian Wins Easily

The Capistrano Valley Christian girls’ volleyball team had an easy time with its overmatched opponent Tuesday in the first round of the Southern Section Division V-AA playoffs.

Capistrano Valley Christian defeated Riverside Christian, 15-1, 15-1, 15-0.

After winning state titles in 1991 and 1992, the Eagles lost in the Southern Section quarterfinals the last three years.

This is the year the team expects to return to the top.

“We’re really deep. We have at least 11 girls that play every game,” Capistrano Valley Christian Coach Dave Barkley said. “We have such a deep team that we can do that and we don’t drop off. Our strong point is ball control.”

Barkley started his reserves in the third game against Riverside Christian (7-8).

Capistrano Valley Christian had 31 aces. Senior Carmen Fusco, selected the school’s 1995-96 athlete of the year, led the Eagles with eight aces and five kills.

But the Eagles (15-3) also lost concentration a bit, missing 11 serves. Barkley said the poor level of the competition was disruptive to his team’s momentum.

“It certainly doesn’t help a lot,” he said.

Capistrano Valley Christian is expected to meet some tougher competition soon. They are on track to meet Academy League-rival St. Margaret’s in the quarterfinals Saturday.