Breakers outlast Sailors

Bryce Alderton

Momentum changed sides Thursday about as often as Dan Glenn and Lance

Stewart, coaches of Newport Harbor High and Laguna Beach girls

volleyball teams, respectively, have matched wits against one another

throughout the years.

The two longtime leaders were at it again, watching the Sailors

and Breakers need five games to decide the winner of the nonleague

contest.

In the end, host Laguna Beach rode the play of outside hitters

Stephanie Darnall and Dana Hutchinson, and capitalized on Sailor

mistakes, to score a 25-23, 20-25, 22-25, 25-19, 15-13 victory.

Hutchinson, a freshman, tallied a match-high 24 kills while junior

teammate Stephanie Darnall slammed 19 for the Breakers (8-4), who

gleefully embraced one another on their side of the court after a

Sailor hit landed in the net to end the match.

“We made too many unforced errors, especially in that first game,

but Lance does a great job with [the Breakers],” said Glenn, in his

19th year guiding the Sailors. “[The Breakers] jump served well and

we had trouble passing it. [Hutchinson] and [Darnall] are two good

outside hitters. You know where the ball is going, but it is still

hard to stop it.”

Senior outside hitter Kiley Hall led the Sailors (3-6) with 15

kills and 10 digs while teammates Coco Yokoyama and senior Taryn

Tarnutzer each tallied 12 kills.

Newport never trailed in pulling away during game three and held

an 8-7 advantage in game four. But the Breakers scored six of seven

points in one stretch to earn a 19-13 cushion. Toman and Tarnutzer

would team on two stuff blocks, but the Breakers held on.

The largest lead for either team in the shortened fifth game was a

10-7 Breaker advantage.

The Sailors evened the game at 10 following three Laguna errors

before the hosts regained the edge, 13-11, lead after a Darnall kill.

Newport tied it at 13 following a Yokoyama kill and a stuff block

from middle blocker Hadley Burnham.

But Hutchinson answered with a powerful kill through the middle

and the Breakers claimed the match with the aforementioned Newport

error.

“That wasn’t the prettiest match, but it was nice to win,” said

Stewart, who has clashed with Glenn-led Newport teams countless

times, including CIF Division I final and state championship in 1993,

the year he led Corona del Mar to its second straight national

championship.

“You know [Glenn’s] teams serve tough and play good defense. That

is what they did [Thursday night],” Stewart said. “They’re a little

young, like we are.”

Freshman Alesha Young saw significant time as setter in the front

row and also provided four kills to go with three digs for the

Sailors. Tarnutzer added six digs while sophomore Megan Toman led

Newport with three service aces.

Glenn experimented with different lineups against the Breakers,

trying to find consistency.