SUNRISE REGION: Frantic rally saves season for Wildcats

Las Vegas High entered the Sunrise Region girls volleyball tournament as the Northeast League champion and a winner of 15 of its previous 16 matches.

And the Wildcats nearly exited the tournament in the first round Tuesday.

With her team trailing fourth-seeded Basic by two sets at Green Valley, Las Vegas coach Sue Thurman reminded her team there was a reason behind their accomplishments.

The Wildcats responded, using a frantic rally to defeat the Wolves 18-25, 19-25, 25-19, 26-24, 17-15.

Las Vegas (20-5) will face Coronado in a semifinal at 7 p.m. Thursday at Legacy.

“Anyone can beat anyone on any given day,” Thurman said. “We knew Basic was a good team.”

But she pointed out that it takes three sets to win a volleyball match.

“When we were down 2-0, I told them it wasn’t over,” said Thurman, whose team survived a match point by the Wolves at 15-14 in the fifth set. “I told them they had to change their attitude and start fighting. And they did.”

Basic (16-13) claimed the first two sets with relative ease, but the Wildcats served notice early in the third that they were not going to roll over. Carly Cottle had six of her 12 digs in the set to help Las Vegas take control from the start.

“We’re a strong team,” Cottle said. “When we’re losing, we push back and fight. My coach was telling me to go to the ball, so I went in and started hitting.”

Thurman said Cottle is a unique leader.

“She doesn’t talk much, and she never complains,” Thurman said. “But she’s one of our hardest workers.”

The Wildcats continued to battle in the fourth set, though they were forced to overcome an early 16-8 deficit. They chipped away, finally tied it at 22 and won the set when Basic put a pass into the net.

Las Vegas jumped to a 5-0 advantage in the final set, but eventually surrendered it when Leah

Causey had back-to-back blocks to give the Wolves their first lead and match point at 15-14.
But the Wildcats fought back and won it when Desirae Lair slammed her final kill across the court for match point.

Causey and Kamisha Richardson each had 11 kills to lead Basic, and teammate Victoria Foutz had 10 kills.

Las Vegas got big performances from Tiffany Jackson (44 assists, 13 digs, 6 kills), Desirae Lair (12 kills, 12 digs), Marissa Lair (12 kills) and Katie Mathews (19 digs).

Coronado 3, Valley 0 — Ku’ulei Piena had 10 digs, eight kills and three aces to help the Cougars roll past the Vikings, 25-14, 25-12, 25-9.

Berkeley Oblad helped Coronado (21-13) with eight kills and two blocks, and teammate Hailey Schulz added 19 assists and two aces.

Gabrielle Cabanero had three kills to lead Valley (10-7), which jumped to a 4-0 first-set advantage before the Cougars took over with nine consecutive points.

Silverado 3, Chaparral 0 — Kayla Agae had 14 kills and 12 digs to help the Skyhawks cruise past the Cowboys, 25-19, 25-11, 25-14.

Morgan Little added 22 assists for Silverado (16-8), which got eight digs from Ku’uipo Brown and five aces from Kristina Hertz.

The Skyhawks will meet Green Valley in a semifinal at 3:40 p.m. Thursday at Legacy.

Jaeda Allen logged 11 kills to lead Chaparral (11-13), which came out strong but folded after a disputed call by officials in the first set. Teammate Cheyenne Huntsman added eight digs and three aces, and Rita Mesa-Mola had four kills and two blocks.

Green Valley 3, Spring Mountain 0 — Nikki Drost had 14 kills and three digs to lead the Gators past the Miners, 25-13, 25-8, 25-6.

Jenna Swaffer added 28 assists and five aces for Green Valley (27-6), and teammate Carly Schiess had seven kills and four aces.

Sunrise Mountain finished 12-14.