Page 69 - 2020 AIA Volleyball Championship Program

For head coach Lori Clarey’s eight-player rotation to turn the tables this time will require plenty of middle hitter Cheyenne Higgins, eighth- best server in the 3A Conference. The senior’s 40 aces top the East Region, and she is also top five in the East Region in digs and blocks, with 153 and 30, respectively.
#14 Pusch Ridge Christian Academy (11-4, 8-2)
Blue Ridge’s real power, however, comes from outside hitter Aman- da Carlson. The six-foot senior is second on the team with 150 digs, but second in the entire conference in kills with 247.
Pusch Ridge finished second in the South Central Region behind new 3A entrant Thatcher, but outside of that season sweep by the Eagles and two late-season Freedom matches at Salpointe Catholic High School and against seventh seed Gilbert Christian, Pusch Ridge hasn’t lost a set this season.
Making them both work is senior Adi Santana. The setter’s 301 assists rank her seventh in 3A, and her 101 digs place her 12th in the East Region.
Plus, beyond a 26-24 second set victory at Safford High School, the Lions haven’t allowed over 21 points in any game they’ve won this fall.
Sophomores Amanda Berges and Sarah Miles continue to show why they are Blue Ridge’s best young players. Berges had 18 digs and 16 kills against Winslow, while Miles added 18 assists, 10 digs and three aces.
Half of the roster is comprised of seniors, including co-captains Danitza Carreon and Sydney Soto. Other upperclasswomen include Geneva Elliott, Avery Hart, Natalie Hill and Savannah Kay.
Juniors Keely Hartman, Teagan Mink and Clare Yorksmith will need to contribute more in the stat book than just 12 digs, three kills and an ace they combined for against Winslow, though.
Juniors Christina Shaffer, Leah Sunukijan and Riyah Warner strike a young balance with sophomores Vienna Elliott, Molly Garnand and Camila Monreal.
#12 Parker (13-3, 8-2)
Almost a month into the season Oct. 20, Payson High School was riding high.
Any team that looks to beat Parker High School will need to put the ball where Demi Durham isn’t. The senior outside hitter’s 294 kills this season leads the West Region, the 3A Conference and the entire state of Arizona.
After 10 games, the Longhorns were 8-2 overall and just a loss to Snowflake from leading the 3A East Region at 5-1 with six matches remaining.
Durham and fellow senior Tallia Robledo combined for nearly 400 kills and nearly 300 digs this season, in fact, putting them both securely in the top 10 of the 3A West Region this season in each category.
Then, however, they lost four matches in a row, including a four- set loss at a Blue Ridge team they had swept earlier in the season and another four-set loss at home to 5-8 Show Low.
Junior middle hitter Lyndee Hill is also top 10 in the region in kills and aces, with 60 and 32 this fall, respectively.
Though they would recover to win at Show Low as part of an active three-match win streak, they had to sweep Bourgade Catholic in a Nov. 11 play-in match just to draw Snowflake again.
Setting them up is senior Haley Kidd, averaging more than six assists in every set to rank among the top five in 3A.
The Lobos have swept the Longhorns this season, including a 25-6 rout in their most recent set.
Opposite hitter Cassandra Sandoval is also a capable defender. The junior’s 123 digs ranks her among the top 10 in the West Region. Unfortunately for head coach Marie Maya’s chances to avenge a Nov. 3 sweep by fifth-seeded Arizona College Prep, the dropoff is considerable after those five players.
For that to change Nov. 14, setter Kylee Carnes will need more help. The senior’s 301 assists are sixth in 3A and her 193 digs rank fifth in the conference.
None of freshman Amaya Carter, sophomores Tyra Robledo and Kaitlyn Humeumptewa, junior Ernestine McCabe or senior Alissa Salcido went the distance against the Knights, meaning a consistent perfor- mance from one or more of these players through three sets would go a long way toward making Parker a dark horse in the 3A tournament.
Carnes’ 29 aces are also third-most in the East Region, but her sup- port has been spotty this season, especially of late. Senior Alex Hagan’s 126 kills were fourth in the East Region, and her total blocks are just three behind senior middle hitter Aspen Harrison’s 51--good enough for seventh in 3A--but production then drops off, by and large.
#13 Tanque Verde (8-2, 4-1)
Sophomore libero Whitney Roberson’s 119 digs help defensively, but seniors Autumn Lynch and Shelby McNeeley, along with sophomore Chancie Deaton, need to get into several stat columns against the Lobos for Payson to have a shot at the first-round upset. Ten digs, three kills, one ace and one assist--the three full-time players’ combined output Oct. 29--aren’t going to be enough to take down the East Region cham- pion.
Though the Hawks can boast a 3A South title, the power rankers still believe they have plenty to prove.
The coronavirus-shortened fall schedule meant Tanque Verde had three weeks to play an entire season--a factor out of the control of head coach Adam Shingler and his team.
#16 Sabino (8-5, 0-4)
Like Yuma Catholic, though, the Hawks’ seeding was set back by their one bad night, a four-game Halloween Eve loss to 5A Sonoran Region non-qualifier Catalina Foothills High School.
It is not every day a team that was winless in its region is playing in the first round of the state playoffs. This being 2020, however, and Sabino High School having won its play-in game Nov. 11 over Eastmark High School in four games, here the Sabercats are, playing Northwest Christian High School.
After getting knocked out of the box by the Falcons in Game 1, Tanque Verde rallied to tie but could not recover the energy to win after falling, 27-25, in Game 3.
Head coach Mark Kornachuk’s team has improved as their corona- virus-shortened schedule has progressed, taking down 4A Conference power Amphitheater on Nov. 3, the day after dropping a tiebreaker, 15-11, at 13th-seeded Tanque Verde.
So the Hawks will need to advance out of the first round by show- ing what they’ve got against new 3A entrant Thatcher. Their starting rotation fills the South Region’s top 15 hitters, but none of them even cracked the top 30 in the conference.
Junior outside hitter Chloe Tague has a dangerous service game, as her 43 aces lead the South Region and are third in the 3A Conference. Her 205 assists are also among the top 15 in 3A, and her 33 kills make her top-five in the region in that category.
A good start can come for the Hawks, though, behind freshman Hannah Haggard, a pleasant surprise serving with 41 aces to finish sev- enth in the conference.
Outside hitter Bailey Bushman had the third-most kills in the South Region this year with 73. She and fellow senior Ella Sprotte are two of the region’s best defenders, combining for 185 digs. Sophomore outside hitter Jasmin Joseph’s 62 kills can provide capable power off the bench.
Tague will need support around her, though, and plenty of it. Se- nior Jade Kwinn and sophomore Kailey Johnson are top-five in the South in kills, combining for 136, and outside hitter Tammy Tran’s 51 kills puts her among the top three hitters in the region.
Another senior, setter Madison Wilson, had 180 assists to finish among the region’s top three. She could use more backup from juniors Kambria Rudd and Emily Ruskay, who added 77 assists.
Senior libero Annie Nichols’ 86 assists help, as do Kwinn’s 47 digs. Four of the region’s top five blockers play for Sabino, but they don’t rank among the top 50 in the 3A Conference. The Sabercats will need to play to all their strengths.
Middle blocker Abigail Weeks is the most consistent hitter outside this group, with 61 kills, 29 aces and nine blocks. But she will need more net protection help from fellow junior Carly Deck and senior Laila Van Hook, who had just 17 blocks as starters against their shortened sched- ule.
“We were moved to a stronger section this season so we were able to come in as the top seed,” said Northwest Christian head coach Jenna Hope. “We have not played Sabino so we will focus on controlling our side of the net.
Head Coach Dana Wahl’s Lions are somewhat of a mystery that third seed Valley Christian will need to solve.
#15 Payson (10-6, 6-4)
“We also have played seven of the top eight seeds in [the] regular season...[when] we normally would play in tournaments with the top teams in the state, but because of the craziness of this year that did not happen. We are disappointed with the lack of tournaments
but are excited to play competitive volleyball during state.”