SOQUEL >> Harbor High’s girls volleyball team took on Soquel, the team right behind the loop-leading Pirates in the Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League standings on Tuesday night. It was “Dig Pink” night at Soquel and the home team came out red hot, eager for an upset.

Claire Petersen and Jillian Winterburn led the Knights to a first-set win and a 15-13 lead in the second set. At that point, Maren O’Farrell and the Pirates turned the tables and ran away to a decisive victory, 21-25, 25-20, 25-14, 25-16.

Stellar back-row defense, led by libero Grace Stryker and defensive specialist Zoe Kemos, and a diverse offense and front-line blocking were the tickets to Harbor’s success. The win keeps Harbor (13-7 overall, 8-0 SCCAL) comfortably ahead of Soquel (11-9, 6-2) and other pursuers in the Pirates’ quest for a second straight unbeaten league season and title repeat.

“It was definitely an energy-driven game,” O’Farrell said. “We took the energy they came out with and made it our own. It was a fun game.”

O’Farrell led all attackers with 15 kills and Isla Johnson added 10 kills for Harbor. Sandy Enriquez had 13 assists. Soquel was led by Winterburn with 12 kills and Petersen with 10 kills and 15 digs.

“We came out really great,” Soquel coach Jake Lee said. “The energy was there. Harbor bounced back well. They played aggressive and they stuck with that every set.”

The decisive sequence of the night came when Harbor erased that second-set lead with a five-point run. O’Farrell ripped three kills in the surge. Holly Rejfir and Sabine Kemos combined on a block for another point and Enriquez swung away for a kill, drawing a lively celebration from her teammates as setters rarely get kills. Harbor closed out the set and rolled to big wins in the subsequent two sets.

From that 15-13 deficit in the second set, Harbor outscored Soquel on cumulative points 62-37 the rest of the way.

“Our confidence got a lot better after the first set,” Enriquez said. “We had really strong middles. Getting the ball to them released the pressure on the pins. It’s always a great competition when we play (Soquel).”

Harbor also received major offensive contributions from sophomore outside hitter Cecile Novembre, middle Sabine Kemos, and right side Rejfir. Additional depth came from Jocelyn Ruelas, Liberty Niesen and Dylan Schutz. Along with Enriquez, Harbor utilized Gianna Fanara, Callahan Stone and Schutz as setters.

“We were not overwhelmed by the moment,” Harbor coach Matt Schutz said. “They were attacking our block. I switched the rotations to get different matchups. And we just started playing better volleyball.”

Soquel now looks to fend off its challengers in the battle for second place, including Scotts Valley, Aptos and Santa Cruz. On the night, Lee tried different combinations. Although the Knights could not upend Harbor, their depth came through. Katy Eze and Mary Henderson made big contributions in the middle. Sadie Holden, Liv Barton and Zoe Adams aided the attack. Lily Juarez-Sapone and Mia Riddle shared time at setter and Gianna Audisio commanded the back as libero.

“We still have another level to get to,” Schutz said. “We need to get a little cleaner. Our goal is to win the league and be undefeated in league. And also win the league tournament again.”

O’Farrell commended Soquel and said the Knights were stronger than when the teams first met back on Sept. 12. Clearly, Harbor has improved too, as that first match nearly went to five sets.

“We’re taking it game by game and we still have a lot games left in league,” O’Farrell said. Then we’d like to win another (Central Coast Section) title and hopefully do well in state.”