Bumped back up into the Others Receiving Votes category of this week’s CHSAANow.com Class 2A volleyball rankings but not yet receiving top 10 love, Ignacio will nonetheless attempt this weekend to equal the 2019 regionals-bound crew’s win total – with plenty of regular-season action remaining to surpass it.
“Just keep the energy up and keep the focus, and we’ll be fine,” said senior Alexis Pontine.
“Going on the road this weekend, we have to go out strong like always,” junior Grace Gonzales said. “Keep our serves really consistent and be able to put the ball down on our third ball. And not … play down to the other team’s level.”
That last criterion could, as Nucla showed the Volleycats on Saturday, be more crucial than any other as IHS travels north to face Norwood Friday and Telluride Saturday in continued 2A/1A San Juan Basin League play.
“We got up early, then we drove and we played at 10 o’clock,” head coach Shasta Pontine recalled, of a 4:30 a.m. awakening and 5:30-ish departure for western Montrose County. “Coming off Homecoming Week our kids were exhausted and we…started…slow!”
Playing a divided doubleheader against the Nucla’s 1A Lady Mustangs, with two varsity-level matches separated by singular JV and C-team contests, Ignacio nevertheless claimed the morning test 25-19, 23-25, 25-17, 25-20. Gonzales heated up to rip 18 kills and Pontine complemented her well with 16, but the duo – accounting for most of junior setter Laci Brunson’s 37 assists – did total 22 errors in 82 attacks. Junior Trinity Strohl landed eight service aces while Pontine placed four.
Defensively Gonzales was stellar, coming up with 22 digs for a double-double, while Strohl matched her count and senior Lexy Young even one-upped it as Ignacio avoided an upset. Pontine also completed a double-double with her 13 digs.
“They pulled it together,” Shasta Pontine said. “The second game, we came in and it was much better. They’d had lunch, and I looked up in the stands and Alexis was taking a nap – the Homecoming Week kind of wrecked them; they were pretty tired –so having that break between the games was rejuvenating.”
In the afternoon rematch, IHS won 25-23, 25-19 and 25-18. Alexis Pontine paced the ’Cats offensively with 14 kills against only four errors for a .294 percentage, and also came up with 16 digs for another double-double. She also fired five aces. Gonzales smacked eight kills at .045, but did come up with a team-high 18 digs and also served five aces.
Brunson booked 30 assists as Ignacio completed the single-day sweep – giving IHS seven straight wins since a Sept. 18 loss at 1A Dove Creek, and leaving them standing 11-2 overall, 7-1 against the full SJBL (only one of the Saturday’s wins counted for the standings) and still 6-0 against its 2A side, while NHS slipped to 5-6, 3-3 (but 1-1 1A SJBL).
“They came on and played much better,” the skipper said of Nucla. “We had to be a little smarter putting the ball down – and getting on top of the ball to put it down – because they were a lot scrappier the second game.”
Young and Strohl were strong in their defensive resistance, each making a reported 16 digs to help rein in the Lady Mustangs.
“When you get teams who have skills to work on, I feel teams drop and play down at their levels sometimes,” said Shasta Pontine. “I’m glad we’re able to pick it back up when we get back to higher-level teams; we’re able to play with them.”
Against Norwood and Telluride, the ’Cats will likely see one squad of each sort.
Caught in an 11-match free-fall, the 1A Norwood Lady Mavericks will step onto their home court winless against all SJBL opposition and standing 1-12 overall. THS, meanwhile, stood 9-7, 4-4 SJBL (3-2 2A SJBL) entering a difficult non-league test Thursday night at 2A Olathe (9-4), rated just above IHS in the aforementioned poll.
“They said Norwood is kind of short on players and so they’re trying to get their varsity to play first. Then they’ve got to share…to play JV,” explained coach Pontine, addressing a 4:30 p.m. start time. “I’m not, honestly, too worried.”
“Telluride, we went five with them,” she noted, “and I’ve been looking at their … stats – they kind of mimic what we do; if we went four with someone, it seems like they went four with them too. I don’t feel they’re going to be a walk in the park; we’re going to have to be on our game to come out ahead.”
“We’ll focus on our side of the court, minimize errors and let the other team make mistakes, then put it down when we find the holes.”
Upon returning, the Volleycats will host Norwood Oct. 19, visit 3A Pagosa Springs on the 21st, and then venture farther east on the 23rd to face non-league 2A Sargent (a 3:30 p.m. varsity-only start) out in the San Luis Valley.