CLASS 1A VOLLEYBALL PREVIEW – EARLY WEEK
BY: KERRY SHERMAN
Following a weekend filled with top match-ups, especially in tournaments, the first half of this week is more of the same. Beginning on Tuesday, and carrying through Thursday, there are double digit matches featuring teams receiving votes in this week’s MHPR rankings.
TUESDAY
#1 SIMLA (6-1) VS CALHAN (0-2)
Simla has reeled off three straight wins, including a sweep of #17 Haxtun last Friday. The Lady Cubs won all three sets by 25-12 scores. Carlee Cox put away 15 kills, and Brynlee Amendt added 10. Haylee Easler chipped in eight. Amendt also recorded four aces and nine digs. Ava Leininger matched her with nine digs. Trenna Kochera led with 20 assists, and Kinlee Cox tacked on 16. Calhan fell in three sets at home on Friday to 2A #11 Akron, 10-25, 22-25, and 9-25. Simla owns a 31-4 advantage in the series during the MaxPreps era, including the last four, all in sweeps.
#5 SWINK (3-0) VS CHEYENNE WELLS (0-3)
Swink has not lost a set in its first three matches, and the Lady Lions are coming off a 25-16/9/15 sweep of La Veta last Saturday. Daisy Heberlie led the way with 14 kills, while Emma Gacnik and Kashlyn Blasingame had six apiece. Blasingame also recorded 21 assists. Lauren Taggart popped up a team-leading 11 digs. Cheyenne Wells lost its third straight by sweep, falling to #15 Otis last Thursday. After dropping the opening set 23-25, the Lady Tigers were handed 14-25 losses in the next two. This is the first meeting between Swink and Cheyenne Wells in the MaxPreps era.
#6 HI-PLAINS (0-0) VS 2A #17 BURLINGTON (2-0)
Hi-Plains is one of the last teams in 1A to get started, but the Lady Patriots get busy in a hurry. They host a Burlington squad that won both of its matches last week in sweeps. The Lady Cougars took down Kit Carson on Thursday, and the got past 2A Wray on Friday. Emma McNerney had a total of 19 kills in the two wins, while Jandri Barkhuizen and Jaylin Campuzano added 11 apiece. Burlington has won eight of 14 meetings with the Lady Patriots, but Hi-Plains has won the last two. Last year’s match went four sets, with Burlington winning the first and Hi-Plains taking the next three. Shayd Skarpohl had nine kills for the Lady Cougars, and McNerney added eight. Cambria Seaman paced the Lady Patriots with 13 kills, and Brianna Rueb tacked on 12.
#7 CALICHE (4-2) VS 2A HOLYOKE (3-2)
Caliche had a busy weekend, starting with a 25-18, 25-23, 20-25, 25-19 win over Otis on Friday. Alexis Breidenbach posted nine kills and 13 digs, while Hayden Walker led with 18 digs. The Lady Buffs then competed in the NJC Spectacular, where they lost in four to 2A #6 Merino, with Breidenbach recording 14 kills and 19 digs. Faye Lueck tallied 10 kills and 15 digs, and Walker registered 25 digs. Caliche beat #8 Fleming in four, and Holyoke in four. Lily Armstrong (21) and Aniston Marostica (19) combined for 40 assists against Fleming, and they tallied 29 more against Holyoke. Raia Sprague led the Lady Dragons with 16 kills, seven blocks, and 21 digs. Holyoke opened the tourney with a sweep of Fleming, and was then swept by Merino. Caliche’s win snapped a 14-match losing streak in the series.
#8 FLEMING (0-3) AT #15 OTIS (4-2)
Fleming only won one set in its three matches at the NJC Spectacular, as the Lady Wildcats falling to Holyoke in three, Caliche in four, and Merino in three. It’s the first three-match losing streak for the Lady Wildcats since 2023, when they had two such streaks. It is also the first time the program has started a season 0-3 in the MaxPreps era. Otis’ loss to Caliche last Friday snapped a two-match winning streak for the Lady Bulldogs. They had swept Wray and Cheyenne Wells earlier in the week. Fleming has won five straight in the series, and owns an 11-5 mark in the MaxPreps era.
#12 STRATTON (1-0) AT DEER TRAIL (1-3)
Stratton lost its first set of the season last Friday at Springfield, and then ran off the next three to get the four-set victory. Kinsleigh Brachtenbach racked up 15 kills, while Khloe Notter and Gracie Miltenberger tacked on eight apiece. Kennedy Henschel (21) and Layla Bancroft (14) combined for 35 digs. After winning the season-opener in five sets, Deer Trail lost all three matches last week. The Lady Eagles fell in five against La Veta on Thursday, and then got swept by Weldon Valley and Lone Star on Saturday. Vailini Samate had 16 kills against La Veta, but could only muster six in the two matches on Saturday. Fatuma Hussein recorded 62 total digs over the three matches. Stratton has won 14 straight against its Union Pacific foe, and 17 of 19 in the MaxPreps era.
#17 HAXTUN (4-3) VS WELDON VALLEY (3-3)
Haxtun got swept last Friday by Simla, with Ashlyn Wolff and Leah Edwards each recording five kills. Up next was the NJC Spectacular on Saturday, and a third straight sweep loss in the opening match against 2A Dayspring Christian. Wolff posted six kills and 11 digs, while Edwards and Scarlett Crossland tied with 12 digs apiece. The Fightin’ Lady Bulldogs bounced back with four-set wins over Idalia and Peetz. Weldon Valley lost its first three matches last week, including sweeps by 2A #2 Sedgwick County and 2A #9 Yuma. The Lady Warriors fell to Lone Star to start the triangular on Saturday, despite 14 kills, seven aces, and 13 digs from Bentley Hickey. Elyse Anderson led with 34 digs. The skid ended with a sweep of Deer Trail later that day. Weldon Valley has won the last two with Haxtun, including a four-setter last year, and leads 7-6 in the recent series.
THURSDAY
#5 SWINK AT 3A LAMAR (2-1)
Lamar lost its season-opener in three to 2A #7 Centauri, but responded by sweeping 2A Ellicott last Tuesday, and downing 3A Florence in four on Thursday. Lisette Frias leads the Lady Thunder with 32 kills on the season, and Mireya Gomez had added 18. Lamar and Swink have not played in the MaxPreps era.
#9 PRAIRIE (1-2) VS KIMBALL, NE (1-1)
Prairie could not get its second straight win, as the Lady Mustangs fell to 2A Akron in five sets on Monday. They will look to get back to .500 with a home match against an out of state opponent on Thursday. Kimball is led by Kyndal Reich and Clarika Hottell, who have nine kills apiece. Prairie won last year’s meeting in five.
#11 CHERAW (2-0) VS EADS (2-2)
It’s a big one in the High Plains, and the teams come in trending in different directions. Cheraw swept 2A Crowley County last Tuesday, while Eads has dropped two straight, including a five-setter to #16 Flagler last Friday, and a sweep at the hands of 2A #8 Evangel Christian on Saturday. Jordynn Turcotte put up 17 kills, 27 digs, and 12 assists against Flagler. The Lady Eagles were busy on defense in that match, recording 202 digs. Emma Wollert led with 47, followed by Aspen Nelson with 37, and Bailey Sierra with 36. Six players had at least 24. The back row could only register 45 digs against ECA, a dozen by Wollert. Eads owns a 15-9 record against Cheraw in the MaxPreps era, but the Lady Wolverines have won the last two.
#12 STRATTON VS GENOA-HUGO/KARVAL (0-3)
Stratton plays its second straight Union Pacific opponent during the week, this time hosting Genoa-Hugo/Karval. The Lady Pirates have not won a set through three matches this season, as they fell to Eads and Wiley last week. Rylee Corn leads the team with 13 kills so far, and Austyn Seymour has added 11. Stratton has won the last 11 matches against the Lady Pirates.
#13 ELBERT (6-1) VS CRIPPLE CREEK-VICTOR (1-6)
Elbert has been on a roll to start the season, losing a total of four sets in seven matches. Two of those came in last Thursday’s five-set victory over Pikes Peak Christian. That was the sixth straight win for the Lady Bulldogs. Cripple Creek-Victor snapped a five-match losing streak with a 2-0 win over Brewster (KS) in the Bethune tournament. The Lady Pioneers had lost their first contest in the tournament in three to Miami-Yoder, and also lost to Bethune in three to close the event. Elbert has won all six match-ups in the MaxPreps era, all in sweeps.
#16 FLAGLER (3-2) VS LONE STAR (3-1)
Flagler kept applying constant pressure in last Friday’s five-set win over Eads, as the Lady Panthers took 228 swings. Rylie Berry put away 22 kills, while Sydnie Berry added 12, and Kenzie Schulte tacked on eight. Freshman Elexx Lahm registered 30 digs and 20 assists, and Jenna Schier recorded 28 digs. Schulte chipped in 14 digs and 21 assists. Lone Star won both of its matches on Saturday, beating Weldon Valley in four, and sweeping Deer Trail. Grace Cochran had 23 kills, 24 digs, and 12 assists against Weldon Valley, and Bryn Cook registered 38 digs. Cochran went for 15 kills, nine aces, 15 digs, and 10 assists in the Deer Trail match. Peytyn Kuntz added eight kills, 19 digs, and 16 assists. Lone Star has won three of the last five with Flagler, but the Lady Panthers are 7-3 dating back to 2016.
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