League action takes center stage on Tuesday night as there are two matches on tap in Class 2A that most likely will determine conference championships and automatic playoff berths.  Those two are Hoehne on the road to Fowler in the Santa Fe and Dayspring Christian at Denver Christian.

PHOTO BY JOEL PRIEST

For Fowler and Hoehne, this is the first of two meetings as they clash again on October 21st.  Both are favored to win their remaining league contests so whichever club gains the advantage in the head-to-head battles should land the conference championship.

Fowler (5-0) is unbeaten including four conference wins.  They’ve dropped just one set the entire season.  Senior Emily Flanscha is the first option on offense and has responded with 57 kills.  Classmates Tannice Wetzel (38) and Hailey Smith (26) are second and third.  Baylee Stowers, with 137 assists, has done a good job to getting the ball to that trio.  Olivia Romero and Brooke Bell share the defensive lead with 43 digs apiece.

Hoehne (6-1) has won two straight since falling to 3A Alamosa in three sets on August 31st.  They have four league including a three-game sweep of Holly last Saturday.  The Farmers collected 35 kills in that win including 10 from Trynity Martin.  Jessica Sakariason led the team with four aces and 27 assists.  Nevaeh Martinez finished with a dozen digs.

The same scenario plays out in the Mile High conference where Denver Christian and Dayspring Christian are favored to finish 1-2.  It’s an important stretch for Denver Christian as they’re coming off a big five-set win over Union Colony Prep last Thursday.  Another win means they likely have to get by only Heritage Christian and Highland to win the big 14-team conference title.  The Thunder are the two-time defending league winners and also captured the 2A state championship in 2019.

Thursday’s win was not easy for the Thunder.  They won the first two sets but then were forced to a fifth set where they survived 15-9.

Dayspring Christian (7-1) has the most wins of any league team and they also own a victory over Union Colony Prep.  Their match went four sets and was the opposite compared to Denver Christian’s win.  The Eagles dropped the first set 25-22 but then swept the next three including 25-21 in set four.

The Eagles earned nine kills from Tabor Flanagan and eight apiece from Karrin Chandler and Alexa Shenkenberg.  Corrin Sides and Madison Meissinger each finished with seven.

One other league match in the smaller classifications finds Wiggins at Haxtun on Tuesday.  They are two of five ranked teams in the rugged 2A/1A Lower Platte but it will play second fiddle to Friday’s showdown of Sedgwick County and Merino.  They are two of the favorites to land the league crown and both moved to the top spot in the statewide rankings on Monday; Merino in 1A and Sedgwick County in 2A.

Each week from now through the end of the regular season will feature great pairings inside the 3A Patriot.  And that schedule two attractive matchups on Tuesday night between Resurrection Christian – Platte Valley and University at Valley.  Resurrection Christian and University are ranked second and third this week but neither is expecting an easy win as all four clubs won league openers last week.

Resurrection Christian has just one conference win (1-0) but it was a big one as they swept Sterling on the road last Tuesday.  The Cougars had 13 more kills than Sterling (37-24) with Mackenzie Flikkeman leading the way with 10.  Jeorgia Jones and Reagan McWhinney each chipped in seven.  Kylee Nordhagen provided 29 assists and Sophia Knevelbaard 12 digs.

Platte Valley has spent a couple of weeks in the top 10 this year and their record (5-5) is very deceiving.  They’ve lost to 4A opponents Longmont, Palmer Ridge and Lewis Palmer along with 5A Pueblo West.  The fifth loss was a 2-1 decision to Eaton at the Northern Colorado volleyball jam.

Freshmen have played key roles for the Broncos this year.  Karsyn Fetzer has a team best 94 kills and Lauryn Uyemura tops the stat sheet with 183 assists.  Both lead the team in aces with 21 apiece.

University (7-1) scored a three-game sweep of Strasburg in their league opener last week.  They also visit Resurrection Christian and Eaton the next two Tuesday’s so the Bulldogs are entering a key stretch of their Patriot league schedule.  Senior hitters Chole Ruhl (55 kills), Logan Conlin (48) and Aesha Alrashed (48) lead the University offense and Kaitlin Smith (89 assists) and Daryn Whitmoyer (81) share setting duties.  Ruhl (73 digs) and Conlin (72) are 1-2 in digs.

Valley’s conference win came at Estes Park (3-0) last week and all six of their matches this season have ended in sweeps.  They’ve won five including three straight since falling to 4A power Thompson Valley on August 26th.

The early lead in the 3A Intermountain league goes to the winner of Bayfield-Pagosa Springs on Tuesday.  The Wolverines are 1-0 and Pagosa Springs 2-0.  Both clubs have already beaten defending league champion Montezuma Cortez on the road so both are strong title contenders.

Pagosa Springs topped Cortez 3-1 on Saturday and used the win for a climb to seventh in the statewide polls this week.  Molly Graham had six kills with Pryscylla Howard, Kori Lucero, Lynette Bartz and Chantelle Caldwell each recorded five.  Lucero (11) and Bartz (10) combined for 21 digs and Audrey Martin finished with 24 assists.

Bayfield’s win over Cortez came in three sets on September 7th.  The Wolverines collected 35 kills with Annie Fusco getting almost half (17).  Emily Nelson also served up six aces and Sage Killough ended the win with 27 assists.  The Wolverines have also played a much stronger schedule as they’re coming off a 1-3 showing at the Lewis Palmer Tournament which included a 2-1 win over 4A ranked Niwot.  They also lost to Montrose, Windsor and the host Rangers.

In Class 1A, the High Plains league chase probably comes down to three teams in Kit Carson, McClave and Cheraw.  The first two collide tonight in Kit Carson with the winner moving very close to a top two league finish.

Kit Carson is 5-4 overall but started the conference slate by beating Cheyenne Wells 3-1 last Friday.  Tess Johnson had seven kills and Kenzie Waggoner five aces.  It’s the conference opener for McClave and the Cardinals enter with a perfect 5-0 record overall.  Sophomore McKayla Kiniston, with 34 kills and 69 diggs, leads the team in both categories.  Freshman Makayla Phillips has 95 of the team’s 96 assists.

In Class 4A, Windsor heads to Erie on Tuesday.   The two clubs are a combined 3-0 in early league and share the NCAA conference lead with Longmont and Skyline.  Each team faces the other twice so the conference slate is still very very early.

Heritage looks to build on their showing at the Cherry Creek tournament over the weekend as they challenge Chaparral to open the Continental slate.  The Eagles reached the championship match before falling to the 2nd ranked Bruins there (2-1).  Along the way, Heritage surprised top 10 opponent Rampart in three sets.

Chaparral has won three in a row since a four-set loss to top ranked Grandview.  That includes a high-quality win over 4A #2 Cheyenne Mountain (3-1).

Outside the conference, there are several high level matchups set for either Tuesday or Wednesday.  The list includes three teams ranked number one in their respective division.

  • 5A:  #1 Grandview at #4 Mountain Vista (Tuesday)
  • 4A:  #1 Palmer Ridge at #7 Valor Christian (5A) (Tuesday)
  • 1A:  #1 Merino at Otis (Tuesday)
  • 1A:  #2 Briggsdale vs Flatirons Academy (Tuesday)
  • 4A:  #10 Thomas Jefferson vs Regis (Wednesday)

Monday’s action provided a highlight for #6 Lutheran (3A) as the Lions fought past 4A Lewis Palmer in three sets.  Set two was a thriller with the Lions grabbing the 28-26 win.  Lutheran is now 6-1 on the season ahead of Thursday’s big battle with Eaton.