CLASS 1A VOLLEYBALL PREVIEW – WEEK EIGHT by Kerry Sherman

CLASS 1A VOLLEYBALL PREVIEW – WEEK EIGHT

BY: KERRY SHERMAN

We’re going to shift the focus of the Class 1A preview this week to highlight the matches each night that will have the largest impact on the CHSAA Selection and Seeding Index. All rankings listed are from the Thursday morning update of that metric.

THURSDAY

Stratton (#6) hosts Otis (#3) in a non-league clash that is a rematch of a five-setter won by Stratton at the Akron tournament a few weeks back. The Lady Eagles have won three straight since dropping a five-setter to Yuma in pool play at that event. That includes a five-set victory over Idalia last Saturday. Sedonia Isenbart posted a triple-double of 12 kills, 26 digs, and 21 assists in that win. Hanna Notter added a career-high 42 digs. Otis is also on a three-match winning streak since losing to Stratton in Akron. All three have been sweeps, including one over Loveland Classical last Friday. Kylee Ballah served up six of the Lady Bulldogs’ 19 aces in that win, and Alli Hornung had 20 assists.

Hi-Plains (#16) was comfortably in a regional hosting position just one week ago. The Lady Patriots have been in a free fall since, with five-set losses to Kit Carson and Arickaree causing them to slide seven spots in as many days. They will try to right the ship against Genoa-Hugo/Karval (#24) who holds the final postseason spot right now. The Lady Pirates had a three-match winning streak snapped on Tuesday with a four-set loss to Cheyenne Wells. Freshman Rylee Corn had 14 kills in that loss. It was her fourth straight match with double digits, and she’s averaging 15.5 per match in that run.

Weldon Valley (#12) currently owns the last regional hosting spot and the Lady Warriors are second in the NCL, just behind Briggsdale and ahead of Fleming. They’ve won four straight entering the contest against Prairie (#38). The Lady Warriors have only lost one set in this streak, and that was against Prairie two weeks ago. Annie Onufrak hammered 21 kills in that match, starting a streak of four straight outings with 20 or more. The junior has tallied 20 or more kills seven times this season. Prairie has dropped two straight (Otis, Briggsdale) and three of four. The Lady Mustangs opened the season with losses in 11 of their first 13 matches.

FRIDAY

Cheraw (#10) reached as high as #3 in the Seeding Index earlier this season, but a 3-3 stretch sent the Lady Wolverines tumbling. They picked up a 3-0 win over Rocky Ford on Tuesday, sending them into the match at Kit Carson (#15) with some momentum. Cheraw had 13 aces in that win, four by Adi Miell. Kit Carson had had a couple bobbles this season, but enters this match having won four straight. Shay Rady had 40 assists in the win over Hi-Plains last week and followed that with 30 against Cheyenne Wells.

In the NCL, Weldon Valley will host Fleming (#13) who is just half a game back of the Lady Warriors and right behind them in the Seeding Index. Weldon Valley took a five-set victory at Fleming a month ago, beating the Lady Wildcats for the first time in 12 tries. The Lady Warriors had only won a single set in those 11 previous losses. Fleming has won 42 of 53 against Weldon Valley in the MaxPreps era. The Lady Wildcats will enter the contest with wins over Haxtun and Peetz under their belts. In that first meeting, Onufrak had 20 kills for the Lady Warriors, while Ashley Bornhoft had 16 for Fleming.

Granada (#14) is part of the logjam behind McClave in the High Plains standings after falling to Cheraw last Friday, snapping a five-match winning streak. The Lady Bobcats got a nice non-league win over rival Holly on Monday with Kinsley Williams directing the attack. The freshman setter picked up 20 assists in the sweep victory. Granada hosts Eads (#21) in league play, before facing the Lady Eagles again on Saturday as part of the McClave tournament. Eads has improved its postseason chances by winning four straight to climb a game above .500 on the season. The best of those win was two weeks ago against Cheraw in four sets. Anna Wollert and Kara Wilson had 15 kills apiece in that victory.

Flagler (#32) still has the kind of schedule that could lead the Lady Panthers into the postseason, but it’s going to take a lot of wins down the stretch for that to happen. They host another team that has recently seen its postseason hopes take a big hit, when Arickaree (#27) visits. The Lady Bison won the opening set against Lone Star on Tuesday, but then dropped the final three. It cost them two spots in the Seeding Index, but made the challenge ever bigger. Like Flagler, they still have enough tough opponents left on the calendar to get them into the regional field, but winning this match is imperative.

SATURDAY

The McClave tournament will include the hosting Lady Cardinals (#2), Granada, Eads, Kim/Branson (#42), South Baca (#41), Walsh (#39), and 2A Rocky Ford (#63).

Another big tournament on Saturday is the Stratton Bash. That field includes the hosts, Cheraw, Hi-Plains, Genoa-Hugo, Kiowa (#26), Lone Star (#30), Flagler, and 2A Burlington (#29).

Dove Creek (#7) and Sangre de Cristo (#20) will meet as part of a triangular at 2A Monte Vista (#54). Dove Creek has won eight in a row, losing a total of three sets along the way. Two of those came in a five-set win over 2A #4 Mancos. Sangre rode a two-match winning streak into Thursday’s match with Mountain Valley. Monte Vista had lost six of its last 10 heading into a Thursday match with Sanford.

Merino (#1) visits 2A #3 Sedgwick County, having dropped just three sets all season. The last three wins by the Lady Rams have been sweeps, including one over 2A #1 Wiggins last Thursday. Sedgwick County rides a three-match winning streak into the match, all by sweep.

There’s a really nice non-league clash on the slate, with Fleming visiting Simla (#4). Simla had a seven-match winning streak going into Thursday’s match at Elbert, with the Lady Cubs not dropping a set in the run. Their three losses on the season going into the weekend were to McClave (#2), Wiggins, and Merino.

TUESDAY

Merino will roll into Kit Carson following its big match at Sedgwick County over the weekend for what will be another challenge against a team that looks to be a lock for the postseason. Kit Carson owns a 5-4 edge in the series, but Merino swept the Lady Wildcats each of the last two years.

Otis visits Weldon Valley in a killer non-league tilt of two postseason regulars. The Lady Bulldogs have won five of nine against the Lady Warriors, and they’ve alternated wins and losses over the last six meetings. Each team has a two-match win streak, but those were early in the series. They’ve played three times at the state tournament, with Weldon Valley winning the last two of those match-ups.

Speaking of killer non-league match-ups, how about Briggsdale (#5) hosting Wiggins? Briggsdale rides an 11-match winning streak into Friday’s league contest with Peetz, with only two going beyond three sets. The Lady Falcons beat Weldon Valley in five sets, and need four sets to dispatch Belleview Christian (#18). Jenna Krise leads the entire state, regardless of classification, with 359 kills, and she’s at 1339 for her career. She’s also closing in on 1300 career digs. Kayl Klem has added more than 200 kills to the attack this season. Briggsdale owns a 3-2 mark against Wiggins, but lost to the Lady Tigers in three sets last year.

There will also be a huge league match inside the High Plains, with Granada hosting McClave. Those two are locks at this point to make the postseason, but the lead in the league could be at stake. The Lady Cards, who have lost four sets heading into the weekend, have won 24 of the last 25 against Granada, and 18 straight. McClave only dropped four sets in that stretch. Granada’s last win came in 2012. The Lady Bobcats did force a decisive third set against McClave in their best of three match in the McClave tournament.