by Kirstin Olsen/ESPN RISE 

Santa Barbara's gym was packed on Halloween night to watch the two top guns of the Santa Barbara Tournament of Champions square off, ESPN RISE FAB 50 No. 1 Archbishop Mitty and No. 6 Dos Pueblos.

Dos Pueblos advanced with wins over Liberty, Harvard Westlake and a big win over No. 5 Newport Harbor in the semifinal, 25-13, 26-25, 25-14. The Wopat twins, Sam and Carly, lead their team with versitile hitting and physical presence at the net. Sophomore Taylor Racich, boosted her team on the right side and earned all tournament honors.

	Kirstin Olsen/ESPN RISE
	The TOC win marks the third tournament win of the year for Mitty.

Archbishop Mitty walked through the tournament beating San Marcos, Corona del Mar, and La Costa Canyon in the semi-final 25-20, 25-30, 28-26. Their "never say die” defense lead by libero Ryan Shaffer, great setting and array of offensive weapons helped the Monarchs dominate the field.

The final was a rematch of the Archbishop Mitty Invitational final. 

In game one Dos Pueblos had no passing rhythm.  The Monarchs seemed to better every ball and the Chargers let some balls drop.  Dos Pueblos fought back to tie it up at 15, but Mitty showed strength on defense and the Monarchs took the first game 25-21.

Game two started out the same with some unstable passing in serve receive by the Chargers. Mitty continued to dig Dos' twins array of shots and hits and proved to be in control with good ball handling skills.

Game three Carly Wopat came out on fire leading 2-0.  Mitty tied it up at 12, but  (Carly) Wopat's fire was contagious as Taylor Racich hammered a ball down the line for Dos Pueblos. Sam Wopat came up with some key serves to give them 18-15.

The game was once again tied up at 22, when Sally Yengst served two tough jumpers for 24-22. Mitty sided out with a Rachel Williams kill, but Dos Pueblos pulled it out, 25-23.

(Carly) Wopat is definitely one of the most versatile hitters in the state. She was effective everywhere she was set, on the left, quick in the middle, on the right and in the back row. She elevates well and has an extremely high reach. There is no question why Stanford wants both Carly and her sister Sam.

Game four was mostly dominated by Mitty with big outsides Kristina Graven and Rachel Williams coming alive. Monarchs' setter Joan Caloiaro spread her offense evenly and left the Chargers guessing with her dumps. Dos Pueblos tried to rally back at 16's with a big dig and kill by Taylor Racich. Rachel Williams ripped one down line and then angle to give the Monarchs their third game-match championship point of the year and win 25-21.

Mitty's head coach, Bret Almazan-Cezar stated after the game, " I hope to see Dos Pueblos winning their division at state [championships]. They are so physical and so well coached, they really challenge us.”

Kristina Graven ended with 18 kills and Rachel Williams with 15. Libero Ryan Schaffer posted 20 digs for the Monarchs.

This tournament win marks the first time in Archbishop Mitty history that the team has won all the tournaments they played in a season. Their tournament victories this year include the prestigious Durango Classic in Las Vegas, Nevada, their own tournament, the Archbishop Mitty Invitational and finally the Tournament of Champions in Santa Barbara.

All Tournament Team

Cathedral Catholic   Kelly Reeves

Torrey Pines            Katie Dutchman

Harvard Westlake    Meg Norton

Corona del Mar         Madison Smith

La Costa Canyon      Kendall Poland

Newport Harbor         Katy Thompson

Saint Francis             Jordan Shaw

Dos Pueblos              Taylor Racich

Dos Pueblos              Sally Yengst

Archbishop Mitty        Kristina Graven

Archbishop Mitty        Joan Caloiaro