A 2-0 hole for the San Benito Haybalers on Thursday night was
too much to overcome as the Monterey Toreadors, the top-seeded team
in the Coastal Division, advanced to Friday night’s Tri-County
Athletic League championship match following a four-set (27-25,
25-20, 19-25, 25-22) win over the Balers.
WATSONVILLE
A 2-0 hole for the San Benito Haybalers on Thursday night was too much to overcome as the Monterey Toreadors, the top-seeded team in the Coastal Division, advanced to Friday night’s Tri-County Athletic League championship match following a four-set (27-25, 25-20, 19-25, 25-22) win over the Balers.
Follow Free Lance Sports on Twitter.
San Benito, which owned the No. 2 seed in the Valley Division of the TCAL, played undefeated Monterey tight throughout Thursday’s opening-round match of the TCAL Tournament, falling in each set by five points or less.
“It was intense,” San Benito interim head coach Sam Klauer said on Friday morning. “In games past, we’ve let up a little bit, or we’ve lied down and let them beat us. But last night they played a great game.”
San Benito is now 13-4 in the TCAL, 21-7 overall.
Statistics were not provided at press time.
Despite the loss, Klauer was pleased with her team’s performance, feeling this was the first time she’s seen the Balers play well as an entire team, and not just among a few individual players.
“We lost in four, but it was probably the first time we played our best,” she said. “It was the best I’ve seen our boys come out.”
Klauer is hoping the Balers use Thursday night’s momentum in Friday night’s consolation match against Seaside, which lost in four games to Gilroy.
Although Friday’s consolation match will only decide which team takes third place in the league standings, another win for the Balers could go a long way in whether or not the team is awarded an at-large bid in next week’s Central Coast Section Division I Championships.
Seedings for the postseason tournament are expected to be announced on Saturday.
A win over Monterey on Thursday would have ensured San Benito not only a chance at the TCAL title, but also one of the league’s two automatic playoff bids. There’s still a chance the Balers could earn an at-large bid, though, and a win over the Spartans on Friday would only help.
“Tonight’s game is crucial for that,” Klauer said.
The two teams will meet Friday evening at Watsonville High School. Match time is 5 p.m.
The TCAL championship will be played afterward between Monterey and Gilroy, the top-seeded teams in the Coastal and Valley divisions, respectively.
SANB — 25 20 25 22
MONT — 27 25 19 25
