CLASS 1A VOLLEYBALL PREVIEW – WEEK THREE
BY: KERRY SHERMAN
The first few weeks of the volleyball season have seen a lot of tournaments, and while that trend continues, this weekend has a number of key one-on-one match-ups, as well as some big triangular. We will utilize our MileHigh Prep Report Media Rankings for our previews until more data is available for the Selection and Seeding Index.
#1 MERINO LADY RAMS (5-0)
Merino rolled its way to the title in the NJC Spectacular last Saturday, sweeping Holyoke, Otis, and Dayspring Christian in pool play, and then taking care of Haxtun 3-0 in the championship match. The Lady Rams made it five straight without dropping a set with another 3-0 sweep of Peetz on Tuesday. They are off until Tuesday, when 2A Holyoke pays a visit in LPAA league play.
#2 MCCLAVE LADY CARDINALS (2-0)
After sweeping Las Animas in the season-opener, McClave dropped the first set with Lone Star last Saturday. The Lady Cards roared back to win the next three and move to 2-0 on the year. McKayla Kiniston, Abrielle Gomez, and Avery Hemphill each had nine kills in that match, while Emily Melgoza added eight and Ashlynn Steinbrunn tallied six. Makayla Phillips recorded 23 assists. The Lady Cardinals have a major challenge on Saturday, as they visit #3 Simla. On Tuesday, they will open High Plains play at Cheyenne Wells.
#3 SIMLA LADY CUBS (4-1)
Simla suffered a 3-0 loss at the hands of 2A #2 Wiggins in the finals of the Kit Carson tournament two weeks ago, but responded to take care of both Byers and Calhan in sweeps. Freshman Carlee Cox is leading the attack with 52 kills and a .283 hitting percentage. Kylie Maranville isn’t far behind with 50 kills. Zaida Harms is averaging 15 digs per match, and Meadow Nusbaum (138) is close to nine assists per set. After hosting #2 McClave on Saturday, the Lady Cubs will travel to Genoa-Hugo on Tuesday for another non-league contest.
#4 BRIGGSDALE LADY FALCONS (4-1)
Briggsdale dropped the first two sets at home to #10 Idalia last Friday, but came back to take the match in five. Jenna Krise, who led the classification with 612 kills last year, went over 1000 for her career earlier in the season and was recognized for that accomplishment. She began the season with 980. The Lady Falcons will host another perennial state contender, Otis, on Friday.
#5 HAXTUN FIGHTIN’ LADY BULLDOGS (6-2)
Haxtun only dropped one set during pool play in the NJC tournament last Saturday, sweeping Arickaree and Caliche, and then beating Fleming in four. The 3-0 loss to Merino in the championship match snapped a four-match winning streak for the Fightin’ Lady Bulldogs. That streak started with a five-set win over 2A #1 Sedgwick County. Their only other loss came in three sets to Briggsdale during the SedgCo tournament in the opening weekend. Haxtun took a 3-1 win over Holyoke in the LPAA opener on Tuesday at home. They are off until Tuesday, when they host Prairie in non-league action.
#6 FLEMING LADY WILDCATS (4-1)
Coming into the weekend, Fleming’s only loss of the season came against Haxtun in pool play last weekend at NJC. The Lady Wildcats swept Caliche and took out Arickaree in four, also in pool play. In the crossover match for third, Fleming bounced Otis in five, winning the final two sets 25-23 and 15-12. In the first three matches of the season, Ashley Bornhoft had recorded 29 kills and was hitting at a .350 clip. The Lady Wildcats began a tough two-day stretch with a home contest against Wiggins on Thursday and a road trip to Idalia on Friday. They will also visit Akron on Tuesday.
#7 DOVE CREEK LADY BULLDOGS (5-1)
After opening the season with four straight 2-0 wins in tournament play, Dove Creek suffered a five-set loss to Mancos in San Juan action last Tuesday. The Lady Bulldogs bounced back with a 3-0 win over Telluride last Saturday. Railynn Hickman had half of the team’s 32 kills in that contest, giving her 75 on the season. She’s posted a .258 hitting percentage. Dove Creek steps up to play 3A Alamosa on Friday and 4A Pueblo Central on Saturday, both on the road, before returning to league play on Tuesday at Nucla.
#8 STRATTON LADY EAGLES (2-0)
Stratton didn’t see its first action of the season until last Saturday and the Lady Eagles made short work of Cheyenne Wells, 3-0. They added a Union Pacific league sweep of Deer Trail on Tuesday. It’s another extended break for them, as the Lady Eagles won’t see competition again until next Thursday. That’s a big one, as they travel to Wiggins.
#9 LA VETA LADY REDHAWKS (5-0)
La Veta was pushed to the limit in each of its first three matches, and the Lady Redhawks pulled out all three in five sets. There hasn’t been much drama since, as they posted sweeps of Sargent and Del Norte last Saturday. Mattie Bjorum has recorded 71 kills so far, one more than the rest of the team combined. The Lady Redhawks have registered 95 points in the blocking game, 19 per match. La Veta travels to Cheraw on Friday, and hosts 3A Salida on Tuesday.
#10 IDALIA LADY WOLVES (2-1)
Kyndal Richards hammered 27 kills in Idalia’s five-set loss at Briggsdale last Friday, giving her 44 on the season. Jaylyn Kechter (30) and Addyson Juhnke (26) give the Lady Wolves three solid options in the attack. Idalia has a tri at Cheyenne Wells, that includes St. Francis (KS) on Thursday, and hosts Fleming on Friday.
Outside of the top-10, Cheraw will follow-up Thursday’s home match with La Veta by traveling to Kim/Branson on Friday. Granada looks to build upon its 2-0 start with a road trip to South Baca on Thursday. After dropping a sweep loss at Otis last Friday, Kit Carson needs a win on Thursday at 2A Limon to get back to .500 on the season, and the Lady Wildcats also have a trip to Genoa-Hugo/Karval on Friday. Cotopaxi puts its 6-0 mark on the line at Manzanola on Friday, and hosts Florence on Tuesday. Caprock Academy is 5-0 with home matches against Soroco on Friday and North Park on Saturday, and a roadie at Plateau Valley on Tuesday. Flagler (5-0) and Hi-Plains (3-0) are also among the ranks of the unbeatens. Both are off until late next week.
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