By Pete Borello

The girls volleyball teams from Los Altos and St. Francis highs made quick work of their respective Central Coast Section semifinal opponents last Thursday, sweeping them in less than an hour.

Los Altos whipped Willow Glen 15-4, 15-9, 15-2 in the Division III semifinals at Valley Christian High; St. Francis pounded Piedmont Hills 15-1, 15-7, 15-2 in the Division I semis at Santa Clara High.

Coaches for both local squads said they won with team efforts.

“Tonight, Los Altos demonstrated what a total team performance is about,” Eagles coach Dave Winn said. “Everyone contributed from each of their positions throughout the whole match.”

Allie Miller led the Los Altos offense with eight kills, followed by Juli Winterbotham and Andrea Cummings with six each. Michelle Nelson posted 27 assists. Defensively, Lauren Schaefer had four solo blocks and two block assists, while Ashley Watson recorded five digs.

The second-seeded Eagles (23-11) got off to a rousing start, putting together a pair of seven-point runs in the initial game.

Los Altos has had trouble closing out matches in three games this season, but it wasn’t a problem against sixth-seeded Willow Glen. After a six-point win in Game 2, the Eagles swiftly ended the match by allowing just two points in the next game.

Top-seeded St. Francis, meanwhile, needed just over a half an hour to dispatch No. 4 Piedmont Hills. Coach Kim Oden was able to rest two of her star players in the process — sitting Diane Copenhagen and Jessica Gysin after the first game — and provide additional playing time for her many talented reserves.

“We played well,” said Oden, whose team improved to 25-1, “and what’s nice is that the level of play didn’t drop — I like that a lot.”

Taylor Whittell, who paced St. Francis with 12 kills, “passed very well, made smart choices in hitting and did just a great job on defense,” Oden said.

The coach also praised the play of Ashley Dutro, Kelsey Miller, Meghan Plunkett and Nichole Clark.

St. Francis, ranked No. 1 in the nation, was set to play second seed and 17th-ranked Mitty in last Saturday’s final. The Lancers went 2-1 against the Monarchs (31-4) during the regular season.

The Division III final, also slated for Saturday, was to feature Los Altos against No. 1 seed Presentation (26-7). The Eagles lost all three meetings with the Panthers during the regular season, two in straight games.

By reaching the finals, both Los Altos and St. Francis have been assured berths in this week’s NorCal playoffs.