SANTA ANA – The Mater Dei girls volleyball team had nothing on the line before its third and final group game against Huntington Beach in the CIF-SS Division 1 playoffs Saturday at Mater Dei High School.

The Monarchs, ranked No. 1 in the state, had already secured a spot in the finals, but their victory over the Oilers continued unabated (25-15, 25-16, 25-16).

Mater Dei (34-4) took a 3-0 lead in Pool B, dropping just one set in those matches and setting up a showdown with No. 1 seed Sierra in the championship game on Saturday, Nov. 9, at Cerritos College Canyon.

The Monarchs are the defending CIF-SS Division 1 champions.

Sierra Canyon lost to Mira Costa in five sets on Saturday night but became Pool A champion on a tiebreaker.

The Oilers (30-7), who lost 0-3 in pool play, are ranked No. 9 in the state and are eligible for the CIF state playoffs, which begin Nov. 12.

Mater Dei coach Dan O'Dell made sure all 20 players on his roster got some playing time against the Oilers.

“The way we were able to approach the game was to keep trying to get better, but let’s also honor some seniors,” he said. “Let’s get the kids involved and mix things up a little.”

The Monarchs opened pool play with a 3-0 win over Los Alamitos, followed by a 3-1 win over Redondo.

“I think we slowly got better as the tournament went on,” O'Dell said. “I felt like I was starting to see our team playing the way we should be playing, so I think we were on that path.”

Sophomore outside hitters Westley Matavavo and Layli Ostovar led the Monarchs with eight kills each.

Matavavo, who transferred to Mater Dei after her freshman season at Orange Lutheran, also had two blocks and served two aces.

Addison Williams and Taylor Ponchak led the Oilers with six and five kills, respectively.

“First and foremost, we have to get it done mentally,” Huntington Beach coach Craig Pazanti said. “We lost three in a row here in the CIF. I don't think we've had a three-game losing streak all season. So now it's time to regroup physically and mentally. Get back in the gym and figure out what we need to do to get better.”