ROUNDUP: Aggies overcome slow start to down Longhorns
Arbor View’s boys volleyball team is confident it can make the playoffs.
The Aggies made a strong case Wednesday with a 25-18, 25-9, 25-15 sweep over visiting Legacy.
Kirby Mengert led Arbor View (6-4, 4-4 Northwest) with nine kills, six digs and two aces and Taylor Jones supplied 30 assists as the Aggies started slow but ended on numerous high notes.
“That’s been a big problem with us, coming out in that first game and being sloppy,” Arbor View coach Steve LeDouceur said. “The second game, we served with a purpose. We put the pressure on them to pass, instead of puttinig the pressure on us. That leads to a lot of free balls, which opens up the middle for us.”
Legacy (3-6, 1-4 Northwest) scored four aces to the Aggies’ one in the first game, but three kills by Mengert during an 8-0 run gave Arbor View enough to put the game away.
“We weren’t really ready for this game,” Mengert said. “We didn’t think we had to play. But once we saw the score, we thought we should play better. We definitely picked it up in the second game. Once we got good passes, we were able to run the offense that we wanted.”
Jesse Morgan keyed a 10-2 run in the second game, serving up a three kills and two aces, to give the Aggies a 21-6 lead.
“We thought he was going to be our libero and designated passer. He’s short, but he’s such an awesome defensive player that I didn’t think we could sacrifice him to play anywhere else,” LaDouceur said of Morgan, who finished with six kills and two aces. “We made the switch a week before the season, and he’s coming into shape. He’s learning that not making an error is as important as making a kill. And when he gets that, we play a lot better.”
Bradley Williams added six kills and two blocks for Arbor View, which hopes to make a solid postseason run.
“We know the mountain that we have to climb,” LaDouceur said. “(Shadow Ridge, Palo Verde and Centennial) have all been in the state championship game in the past three years; they’re always in the playoffs. We by no means think that it’s going to be easy, but we would like to get a third, or a second, if it’s possible. If not, we’ll take the fourth. Our goal is to get to the playoffs, but it’s a little bit easier if we’re the third or second seed, instead of the fourth.”
Hector Bojado had eight assists for the Longhorns, Brandon Paquin added four blocks, three kills and two aces, and Billy Purcell had three kills.
Liberty 3, Green Valley 2 — At Liberty, Paul Acluba had 37 assists to help the Patriots hold off a late Gator comeback, 25-21, 25-20, 20-25, 18-25, 21-19.
James Paras put down 17 kills and Brendon Reano added 13 for Liberty.
Dallas Tueller had 12 kills, Beau Gronert posted nine kills, and Jon Cheun contributed 32 digs for Green Valley.
Durango 3, Bonanza 2 — At Durango, Mark Brautigam had 16 kills to help the Trailblazers to a 16-25, 27-25, 25-20, 18-25, 15-13 win over the Bengals.
Gary House had eight blocks for Durango, and teammate Jake Jackson added 32 assists.
Jared Harrington led Bonanza with 15 kills. Cru Leavitt dished out 16 assists, and Matt Grubelnick added five blocks.
Coronado 3, Del Sol 0 — At Del Sol, Hunter Chaney had 28 assists and eight digs, and Bryan Arana added 10 kills and six digs to lead the Cougars to a 25-19, 25-19, 25-10 win over the Dragons.
Chris Andrulis added five kills, and Jordan Osmundson had three kills and nine blocks for Coronado.
Nick Maglaras led Del Sol with 19 assists. Eric Beil had seven kills for the Dragons.
Silverado 3, Foothill 0 — At Silverado, Casey Hadland had 20 assists and eight digs to lead the Skyhawks to a 25-19, 25-14, 25-19 victory over the Falcons.
Jordan Royal laid out eight kills and Vinnie Gomez added five for Silverado.
Foothill’s Britain Rosenberg contributed 11 assists, and F.J. Funtila supplied 10 digs for the Falcons.
Desert Oasis 3, Western 0 — At Desert Oasis, Trevor Zarvian had 23 assists, and Zach Bobenhausen put down 10 kills to lift the Diamondbacks to a 25-20, 25-18, 25-17 win over the Warriors.
Alex Trillo added six kills and Trevor Stegall had four for Desert Oasis.
Basic 3, Tech 0 — At Basic, Stephen Udall had 21 assists, and Jordan Pils added 16 kills and six digs to lead the Wolves to a 25-20, 25-18, 25-21 victory over the Roadrunners.
Mark Bowman and Tanner Humphreys each posted five kills for Basic.
Shadow Ridge 3, Cheyenne 0 — At Cheyenne, Jeremy Makaiwi tallied 25 assists and 16 digs, and Quinn Skouson contributed eight kills to help the Mustangs cruise to a 25-13, 25-15, 25-11 win over the Desert Shields.
Centennial 3, Cimarron-Memorial 0 — At Cimarron, Connor Earl had 20 assists, and Ryan Ramin added seven kills and three blocks to help the Bulldogs sweep the Spartans, 25-9, 25-12, 25-20.
Dex Tidwell contributed six kills and three blocks, and Mike Robinson tallied six kills and three aces for Centennial.
Brian Grupe had six kills and Chad Wada supplied six digs for Cimarron.
Bishop Gorman 3, Sierra Vista 0 — At Gorman, Colton Guinn had 10 kills, and Ben Carter added five kills and four blocks as the Gaels beat the Lions, 25-13, 25-22, 25-18.
Alex Turner added seven kills for Gorman.
Cody Seager led Sierra Vista with nine kills and two blocks, and Khrumm Fahim added six kills for the Mountain Lions.
Palo Verde 3, Mojave 0 — At Palo Verde, Brandon King served up 13 aces and had four kills as the Panthers swept the Rattlers, 25-14, 25-10, 25-8.
Sean Wilson added 16 assists and five digs, and Trent Gneiting had six kills and eight digs for Palo Verde.
Spring Valley 3, Clark 0 — At Clark, Jayvin Garcia’s 13 kills and five digs helped the Grizzlies sweep the Chargers, 25-19, 25-22, 25-16.
Dallas Teshima dished out 30 assists for Spring Valley, and teammate Khoa Nguyen added nine kills and four blocks.
George Huang had three kills and four blocks, and Josh Baugus posted three kills and three blocks for Clark.
