Poly vs. Harvard-Westlake; Poly High @ 7pm 

The Poly Jackrabbits girls’ volleyball team are on a little bit of a roll right now, full of confidence after a sweep win over Capistrano Valley in the first round, a match that head coach Leland McGrath says may prove his team enjoys playing on the road more than they like playing at home.  Well, they’re going to have to learn to love the home gym, and they’re definitely going to need that confidence against a very good Harvard-Westlake team that’s actually ranked ahead of them in the CIF final poll (the Wolverines were nine, Poly was ten).

It’s another step in an incredibly hard road for Poly—they were the only CIF top ten to start on the road, and now, in just the second round, they face an opponent more highly ranked than they.  The Wolverines are also something of a Moore League-beater.  They’ve faced two Moore League opponents this season, Lakewood and Poly, and swept both of them (Poly fell 25-20, 25-20 at Durango in late September).

The Wolverines have also swept all their November matches, and have picked up a head of steam coming into the Ron Palmer Pavilion—however, Rabbits fans shouldn’t worry too much.  It’s unlikely that any team in the whole bracket has the offensive weapons that Poly does, with Bria Russ, Litara Keil, Felicia Clemente, Sa Iosia, and Zana Bowens all capable of getting clutch kills, directed expertly by Rainette Uiato, the sniper setter who’s already committed to Hawaii.  If Poly can play their Powerball and rock back the OC-discipline of Harvard-Westlake, they’ve got a good shot at defending home court.  If they don’t bring that fire consistently, however, they could be in real trouble.