Nation's best prep volleyball team puts on display at Durango tourney
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By ADAM CANDEE
LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL
LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL
Posted: Sep. 26, 2009 | 3:26 p.m.
Updated: Sep. 26, 2009 | 11:54 p.m.
Updated: Sep. 26, 2009 | 11:54 p.m.
Green Valley’s girls volleyball program annually ranks among Nevada’s elite, yet many of its players sat in awe of the talent in Saturday night’s championship game of the Durango Fall Classic tournament.
A handful of Gators watched at Durango as Archbishop Mitty of San Jose, Calif., the top-ranked team in the country, rallied after losing the first game to Newport Harbor (Calif.) to win the tournament, 16-25, 25-21, 25-20.
Green Valley’s girls swept three matches in pool play Friday and won their Saturday opener before losing to Kamehameha, last year’s Hawaii state champion, in the Bronze Bracket. The Gators found that even the lower levels of the 48-team event featured enormous talent.
“It’s definitely a higher level of competition,” Green Valley sophomore Alexa Drost said. “In Nevada there’s not very much competition. It makes us better.”
In Nevada, the Gators hadn’t witnessed anything like the show put on by the Monarchs and Sailors.
“Their defense was phenomenal,” Drost said. “They are very, very quick. They have really good intuition.”
With nine seniors back from a California state championship team, the Monarchs showed little worry after falling behind and then standing tied at 21 in the second game, rolling off four points without a single traditional kill to regain control.
“(Our players are) so experienced together,” Archbishop Mitty coach Bret Almazan-Cezar said. “They’ve been in these situations, and it’s just, 'Get the next point.’ ”
Monarchs setter Joan Calpiaro kept the offense humming with 33 assists and five kills. Rachel Williams spiked 11 kills, Brittany Bozzini had nine and Kristina Graven seven. As the Gators’ Drost noted, it was Archbishop Mitty’s defense that turned the match, slowing Newport Harbor’s attack after the opening game.
“We were following our reads a little better,” Almazan-Cezar said.
Though Newport Harbor entered with a less lofty No. 87 national ranking, the Sailors feature at least two surefire Division I college prospects in outside hitter Kirby Burnham and middle blocker Katey Thompson. Burnham had 14 kills and Thompson 12.
The Sailors used strong serving and defense to handle Archbishop Mitty easily in the first game and then led 20-19 in the second before the Monarchs used a tip, an ace off the tape, a hammered overpass and a stuff block to complete their comeback. Archbishop Mitty bolted to a 14-8 lead in the third game and never allowed the Sailors back in.
In other tournament matches:
Silverado 2, Newbury Park (Calif.) 1 — At Green Valley, Silverado rallied for a 17-25, 25-18, 25-20 win in a qualifying-round match.
Silverado 2, Clovis West (Calif.) 0 — At Green Valley, Silverado reached the Bronze Bracket with a 25-19, 25-21 win.
Silverado 2, Saint Mary’s (N.M.) 1 — At Green Valley, Silverado advanced to the Bronze semifinals with a 17-25, 25-23, 25-18 victory.
Kamehameha (Hawaii) 2, Silverado 0 — At Green Valley, Kamehameha earned a berth in the Bronze final by beating the Skyhawks, 25-20, 25-21.
Buchanan (Calif.) 2, Silverado 0 — At Green Valley, Buchanan posted a 25-12, 25-21 victory as Silverado finished fourth in the Bronze.
Green Valley 2, Saint Pius X (N.M.) 0 — At Green Valley, the Gators were 25-20, 25-16 winners in a qualifying-round match.
Kamehameha (Hawaii) 2, Green Valley 0 — At Green Valley, Kamehameha won a Bronze berth with a 25-21, 25-20 victory.
Gilbert (Ariz.) 2, Green Valley 0 — At Green Valley, Gilbert breezed into the Competition Bracket semifinals, beating the Gators, 25-13, 25-12.
Chugiak (Alaska) 2, Green Valley 0 — At Green Valley, Chugiak repelled the Gators, 30-28, 25-18 in a Competition match.
Green Valley 2, Tri-City Christian (Calif.) 0 — At Green Valley, the Gators finished seventh in the Competition Bracket with a 25-21, 25-17 win over Tri-City Christian.
Bingham (Utah) 2, Centennial 0 — At Foothill, Bingham defeated the Bulldogs, 25-22, 25-23 in a qualifying-round match.
Centennial 2, Las Vegas 1 — At Foothill, the Bulldogs rallied for a 15-25, 25-20, 25-17 victory and a spot in the Classic Bracket.
Tri-City Christian (Calif.) 2, Bishop Gorman 0 — At Foothill, Tri-City was a 25-19, 28-26 winner in a qualifying-round match.
Bishop Gorman 2, Durango 0 — At Foothill, Gorman topped the Trailblazers, 25-15, 25-16, and advanced to the Classic Bracket.
Bishop Gorman 2, Centennial 1 — At Foothill, the Gaels held off Centennial, 25-11, 16-25, 25-23, to reach the Classic semifinals.
Brighton (Utah) 2, Bishop Gorman 0 — At Foothill, Brighton earned a spot in the Classic final by beating the Gaels, 25-20, 25-20.
Bishop Gorman 2, Saint Pius X (N.M.) 0 — At Foothill, the Gaels finished third in the Classic with a 25-19, 25-22 victory.
Centennial 2, Galena 1 — At Foothill, Centennial rallied for a 23-25, 25-19, 25-23 victory in a Classic match.
Coronado 2, Cottonwood (Utah) 1 — At Foothill, Coronado outlasted Cottonwood, 12-25, 25-21, 28-26 to clinch a Classic berth.
Newbury Park (Calif.) 2, Coronado 1 — At Foothill, Newbury Park overcame an early deficit to reach the Classic semifinals with a 21-25, 25-16, 25-18 victory.
Ponderosa (Calif.) 2, Coronado 0 — At Foothill, Ponderosa posted a 25-19, 25-21 victory in a Classic match.
Ponderosa (Calif.) 2, Centennial 0 — At Foothill, Ponderosa finished fifth in the Classic by stopping the Bulldogs, 25-21, 25-17.
Coronado 2, Galena 0 — At Foothill, Coronado rebounded from consecutive losses to take seventh place in the Classic with a 25-19, 25-19 victory.
Las Vegas 2, Durango 0 — At Foothill, the Wildcats cruised to a 25-9, 25-16 victory and advanced to the Contender Bracket semifinals.
Ponderosa (Calif.) 2, Shadow Ridge 1 — At Foothill, Ponderosa rallied for a 20-25, 25-12, 25-17 win, dropping the Mustangs into the Contender Bracket.
Saint Pius X (N.M.) 2, Foothill 0 — At Foothill, Saint Pius blitzed the Falcons, 25-11, 25-11, to reach the Classic Bracket.
Shadow Ridge 2, Foothill 0 — At Foothill, Shadow Ridge defeated the Falcons, 25-6, 25-8, in a Contender quarterfinal.
Rim of the World (Calif.) 2, Las Vegas 1 — At Foothill, Rim of the World advanced to the Contender final with a 17-25, 25-18, 25-20 victory.
Cottonwood (Utah) 2, Shadow Ridge 1 — At Foothill, Cottonwood outlasted the Mustangs, 25-21, 19-25, 25-22, to advance to the Contender final.
Shadow Ridge 2, Las Vegas 1 — At Foothill, the Mustangs won, 25-21, 14-25, 25-11, to finish third in the Contender Bracket.
Foothill 2, Carson City 0 — At Foothill, the Falcons were 25-19, 25-23 victors in a Contender match.
Seaquam (Canada) 2, Durango 0 — At Foothill, Seaquam earned a 25-21, 25-12 victory in a Contender match.
Seaquam (Canada) 2, Foothill 0 — At Foothill, Seaquam posted a 25-16, 25-15 win in the Contender fifth-place match.
Carson City 2, Durango 0 — At Foothill, Carson City rolled to a 25-9, 25-22 victory and seventh in the Contender Bracket.
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. wrote on October 19, 2009 09:32 PM:
i bet you suck VVV
skyhawk player wrote on October 18, 2009 09:08 AM: gaurantee? are you on our team? do you know how much we put ourselves mentally and physically for our program? no i dont think so. try reading the contract we signed or spending a day with our coach when she has a bad day. you think t is the only player? someone has to pass the ball so she can hit it, someone has to serve it when shes not and someone has to set the ball to her. hey don't middles block too? this year our team is a whole new unit. mess with one you mess with all, mess with all ooooo boy. just sit and watch and wait... BS wrote on October 17, 2009 07:14 PM: If your information is GUARANTEED than why don't you post your names? Don't talk the talk if you can't walk the walk! ... wrote on October 07, 2009 11:00 AM: i can GUARANTEE that silverado wont win state...they have one player and if T gets down...they are NOTHING. at least last year with the other outside...patti i think? they had some positivity. silverado wont go far. i can guarantee that. wrote on September 30, 2009 03:47 PM: On Friday, while Silverado was engaged in a monumental test of their mettle vs. Los Al, Buchanan, & REV, Green Valley was sleepwalking through it's matches against the likes of #40 Galena, #41 Rim of the World, & #43 Shadow Ridge. Silverado got to take their best shot at the future of the Pac-10 while G.V. had to make due with 3 teams that aren't even middle of the pack in their own high school leagues. There's no way to overstate the advantage to Silverado for having the experience. LVVB wrote on September 30, 2009 01:51 PM: ... make that 19 spots above their seeds. LVVB wrote on September 30, 2009 01:11 PM: Silverado began the year as the frontrunner to win State but following this weekend the gap has certainly widened. They were given an opportunity and took advantage of it fully. Green Valley will be playing catch-up for the remainder of the season I'm afraid. LVVB wrote on September 30, 2009 12:37 PM: Silverado's top 20 finish is a huge story but unfortunately the local VB community as well as NVPreps are a little starstruck. Silverado, Green Valley, and Gorman finished a combined 17 places above their seeds. wrote on September 30, 2009 12:02 PM: What exactly did Cottonwood, Brighton, Saint Pius X, and Tri-City Christian do to earn their tickets to the dance? It's O.K that they were just handed a golden opportunity to face off against the premier programs in our sport while two or three of our best local programs were given no access to the top tier clubs? Are you not from Nevada or just the typical Vegas self-loather? This is a Tournament conceived and hosted in Nevada by Nevadans, that gave our neighbors in Utah, New Mexico, and California benefits of the doubt that were not extended to our athletes. Having travelled to many States for many Tourneys, I can tell you that those States would not have done the same. I for one, will continue to support Nevada Volleyball and hope that others in our community will join me in this endeavor. jmo wrote on September 30, 2009 11:08 AM: It's amazing to me that nvpreps did not mention in this article anything about how well the Silverado team did by finishing in the top 20. Instead we got to read what Green Valley did in their pool and hear how they are always one of the best teams in NV. BIG DEAL!!! Correct me if I'm wrong but didn't Silverado already beat Green Valley and Bishop Gorman in early tournament play this year? Read More Comments |
