A regional score will be settled at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday when the Durango High School volleyball team visits Bayfield High School to complete the team’s home-and-home series.

BHS (12-2, 4-0 Intermountain League) beat DHS (10-6, 3-2 Southwestern League) 3-2 in the Demons’ season-opening game.

The Wolverines haven’t slowed down since.

They’ve ripped off nine consecutive wins and haven’t lost a set since beating Piedra Vista 3-1 on Sept. 9 in Farmington.

BHS senior Kirstie Hillyer has been the focus of opposing defenses all season but still ranks in the top three in the state of Colorado across all classifications with a .511 hitting percentage.

She also has 204 kills and 46 total blocks in 43 sets.

It’s not all Hillyer, though.

BHS has four other players that average more than a kill per set, led by sophomore Maddi Foutz’s 1.7.

Foutz also leads the Wolverines with 171 digs and 44 aces this year, and her aces total ranks in the state’s top 20 across all classifications.

Senior setter Suzie Rhodes keeps the Wolverine attack humming with 305 assists.

“I think we’re in a good place as far as training and flexible lineups,” BHS head coach Terene Foutz said. “I think we’re honing in on who we want on court and the angles we want to create offensively.”

By briefly stepping out of their league schedule, the Wolverines will face a more challenging opponent to help boost their playoff résumé.

The Class 4A Demons won five matches in a row following their season-opening loss and currently sit third in the SWL.

“Since we last played Bayfield, which was our first match, we’ve definitely learned, and I think we’ve gotten better and really grown as a team,” DHS head coach Colleen Keresey said. “The girls know how to play well together.”

Maddie Robertson, a junior, leads a balanced DHS attack with 2.5 kills per set, and three other players average more than 1.7.

Senior setter Logan Clark has 354 assists to lead the Demons, while senior libero Sarah Lawton has paced the team with 231 digs.

DHS beat Montezuma-Cortez 3-0 in its last match, which broke a two-match losing streak.

Both teams excel from the service line, averaging more than 2.7 aces per set.

“I think defensive cohesion is huge. Competing against Durango, a lot of successes or failures will be about the first contact,” coach Foutz said. “The serve and pass game is going to be a battle. Defensively, who’s the most mobile, who can protect their weak zones the best?”

[email protected]

Local teams dig pink for cancer awareness

Tuesday’s match between Bayfield High school and Durango High School will be about more than volleyball.
It also kicks off the year’s Pink Digs campaign for breast cancer awareness.
The program is in partnership with the American Cancer Society’s National Breast Cancer Awareness month in October.
All proceeds from the event will benefit local, in-treatment cancer patients through the Women’s Health Coalition Emergency Fund Scholarship Program.
Businesses and organizations can contribute through Business Sponsorship Packages, individual contributions or prevention awareness campaigns.
“This is our 8th Annual Pink Digs Benefit, and we are honored to continue its message. Bayfield and Ignacio student-athletes and coaches are working on their PINK OUT campaigns, while teaching the greater values of community contribution through a sport they love, competing for a cause transcending sport itself,” BHS head coach and Pink Digs Event Director Terene Foutz said in a news release. “We anticipate that our participating students will write over 500 letters soliciting for community support.”
BHS will play DHS at 6:30 p.m. in Bayfield, and Ignacio will face Telluride at 11 a.m. Saturday at the SunUte Community Center.
[email protected]