Road loss dings IHS in league standings
Fate played a fiendish trick on Ignacio Volleyball’s varsity Saturday afternoon, Oct. 15.
Not only did IHS lose 17-25, 25-22, 25-17, 25-27, 13-15 at Telluride, but the Volleycats then went into a new week needing the Lady Miners’ help to continue contending for first place amongst the 2A/1A San Juan Basin League’s 2A-level teams.
Having dominated struggling Ridgway in back-to-back matches on the 8th, Mancos stood 6-1 in 2A SJBL play – before a 10/18 trip to THS – while the full-pull setback set the ’Cats, owners of a 5:4 sets won/lost tiebreaker over MHS, back to 5-2.
Despite facing Ignacio with four players – two injured – benched altogether, and having survived a 22-25, 19-25, 25-15, 25-20, 15-11 full pull against 3A Gunnison the previous night, Telluride improved to 3-3 with not only the Lady Jays’ visit remaining, but also a trip on the 20th to Dolores (2-3 2A SJBL).
IHS (11-8 overall, 7-2 2A/1A SJBL) got an impressive 19-kill, 25-dig double-double against THS (9-11, 3-5) from senior Harmony Reynolds, and classmate Laci Brunson booked one of her own with 36 set assists and 14 digs. Junior Solymar Cosio nearly made it three for the ’Cats, registering nine kills and as many digs.
Offensively, Ignacio’s 39 charted kills were largely offset by 22 errors – leaving the squad with a collective .085 hitting percentage in 200 attacks.
Junior Maci Barnes was credited with 19 digs in the endurance test, while junior libero Kacey Brown and sophomore Marissa Olguin also reached double figures with ten each. Senior Trinity Strohl, junior Darlyn Mendoza-Lechuga, and sophomore Ollyvia Howe each tallied six digs in defeat – finalized when Lady Miner senior Emma Righetti, immediately after Howe kept hope alive by denying freshman Lillyann Mahoney’s tip try, correctly anticipated Cosio’s subsequent tip and stuffed it at the strings.
Statistics for Telluride, victorious in all three of their Homecoming Week matches, had not been verified as of press time.
Looking ahead on the schedule, Ignacio will host 1A SJBL force Dove Creek on Saturday, Oct. 22, then welcome Dolores on the 25th before closing out regular season play on the 27th versus 2A Southern Peaks Leaguers Sargent.
Results from IHS’ 10/18 home match against Pagosa Springs (9-7, 3-5 3A Intermountain) were unavailable at press time.