BELLARMINE-JEFFERSON HIGH — The Bellarmine-Jefferson girls' volleyball team took the No. 1 seed of the Southern Section Division IV-A playoffs within one game of elimination — an exceptional feat considering its opponent hadn't dropped a game going into the match.
Leading two games to one, however, the Guards dropped the fourth, then ultimately fell in the deciding fifth game, to a Hemet squad that proved worthy of its standing, ousting Bell-Jeff in the postseason for a second consecutive season.
The all-too familiar opponent and Mountain Press League champion defeated Bell-Jeff in the semifinals last year, giving Guards Coach Miguel Segura and company extra motivation going into Saturday night's quarterfinal contest.