CLASS 1A VOLLEYBALL REPORT
BY: KERRY SHERMAN
The volleyball regular season in Class 1A is about to make the turn and head down the homestretch, and there’s a lot of jostling for a regional hosting position. The top-12 in the CHSAA Selection and Seeding Index will be at home for a regional contest, so let’s look at what the teams currently in those spots have in the early part of this week. The rankings come from Tuesday morning’s release of the metric.
#1 MERINO (9-0)
The Lady Rams have an LPAA league contest at 2A #41 Yuma on Tuesday and they go in on a nine-match winning streak this season. They’ve won 27 of 28 sets played, including the last 18 in a row. After this match, the Lady Rams face a schedule that includes two of the top five in 1A, five of the top eight in 2A, and a very solid Severance squad that is 11th in 4A.
#2 STRATTON (8-1)
After beating #3 Idalia last Friday, the Lady Eagles took third in the Akron tournament over the weekend. They had wins over Yuma and #11 McClave, but suffered their first loss of the season to 2A #33 Holyoke in five sets. Stratton hosts #30 Flagler on Tuesday in Union Pacific action. Flagler has won its last two, five-setters over #32 Arickaree/Woodlin and #36 Bethune. Stratton has a ton of match-ups down the stretch with top competition, including Merino.
#3 IDALIA (10-2)
The loss to Stratton on Friday was the first of the season for Idalia, who bounced back to beat #45 Kit Carson and 2A #18 Dayspring Christian in pool play at the Simla tourney. The Lady Wolves were then swept by 2A #2 Simla in the finals. The Lady Wolves begin a run of YWKC matches on Thursday by hosting #29 Lone Star. After this week, five of their final seven matches are against teams ranked in the top-10 of either 1A or 2A.
#4 FLEMING (9-2)
Fleming has swept all six opponents in its current winning streak. The Lady Wildcats have not lost a set in North Central League play, but their next two foes are out of league. They are on the road to face a pair of highly-ranked YWKC teams, beginning with #7 Otis on Thursday. That’s followed the next night at #9 Hi-Plains. Only two of their final matches are against teams that are not currently in a regional qualifying position.
#5 EADS (10-1)
Eads has only lost one set in its current five-match streak, and only seven all season. The Lady Eagles don’t have a match in the first half of the week, but will begin a difficult stretch on Friday with a tough High Plains contest against #12 Cheraw. All but one of their final seven opponents are currently in a regional spot.
#6 SARGENT (13-0)
The Lady Farmers won’t put their unbeaten mark on the line until this weekend, but they have been as good as advertised in their first season in the 1A ranks. They’ve won 33 of 34 sets this season, with the only one not going their way coming in a four-set win over 2A #5 Del Norte last Tuesday. After a match-up with Mountain Valley on Saturday, all of Sargent’s remaining contests are against 2A opponents.
#7 OTIS (10-3)
Otis has not dropped a set in its current seven-match winning streak, which includes the title of the Akron tourney on Saturday. The Lady Bulldogs got wins over McClave and #38 Akron in pool play, before downing Holyoke in the title match. Their final month begins with a road test at #22 Cheyenne Wells on Tuesday. The Lady Tigers have lost their last three, all against top-12 foes. The rest of the run doesn’t get any easier, with all but two matches against current regional teams. That includes Fleming on Thursday.
#8 DOVE CREEK (12-1)
It’s been a nine-match run of dominance for the Lady Bulldogs, who have won 27 of the 29 sets in that stretch. They own sole possession of the lead in the San Juan Basin, one game ahead of 2A #23 Mancos, over whom they have two wins this season. The highest ranked team remaining on the schedule is 2A #27 Ignacio at the end of the month.
#9 HI-PLAINS (7-4)
The Lady Patriots had close to 10 days off after suffering back-to-back losses to Idalia and #13 Briggsdale, but they were in action on Monday. They won a four-setter in YWKC play at Lone Star and it was an interesting match. After cruising 25-8 in the first, the Lady Patriots dropped the second 30-32. Hi-Plains visits Kit Carson on Thursday, and then begins a difficult weekend that includes Fleming and McClave. Both of those are at home.
#10 GENOA-HUGO/KARVAL (7-3)
The Lady Pirates won their fifth match in the last six outings last Tuesday, sweeping 2A #57 Peyton. The lone loss in the stretch was at Otis. Genoa-Hugo/Karval sits second in the Union Pacific behind Stratton. Tuesday night sees the Lady Pirates visiting 2A #34 Byers in league play. Thursday, they’re on the road at #44 Wiley.
#11 MCCLAVE (9-5)
McClave lost two of its three matches in the Akron tournament, with the only win coming against the hosts. The Lady Cardinals are 4-4 in their last eight, but have the lead in the High Plains. They host #15 Granada on Tuesday inside the league. It’s one of their toughest remaining contests, along with Hi-Plains and Eads.
#12 CHERAW (8-3)
Cheraw had a busy schedule last week, with the Lady Wolverines winning three of five matches. They started by losing in three to 2A #6, then followed that up with a sweep of Kit Carson in High Plains play. On Saturday, the Lady Wolverines won two of three at the Byers tournament. Along with the host, the other win was against #18 Evangel Christian Academy. The loss came to 2A #4 Lyons. After hosting 2A #48 Crowley County on Thursday, Cheraw visits Eads on Friday.
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