Prep slays Lady Dragons, regains confidence with crucial win
It was as close to a playoff setting as it could get for Monte del Sol and Santa Fe Prep.
The two volleyball programs entered Tuesday’s District 2-3A match in Prep Gymnasium with more than just second place at stake — the winner strengthened its postseason chances as the regular season entered its final week. The Blue Griffins played like their season was on the line, hammering away at the Lady Dragons’ defense in a convincing 25-23, 25-18, 25-17 sweep.
Prep (11-8 overall, 3-2 in 2-3A) gained not only a measure of revenge on Monte del Sol after losing in five games Oct. 11, but also the head-to-head tiebreaker advantage by winning more games in the two matches (five) than the Lady Dragons (three). The Blue Griffins also regained something more important as the district and state tournaments loom in the next two weeks: confidence.
Prep senior Samantha Wilson couldn’t put her finger on why the Blue Griffins are playing better now than they were a couple of weeks ago.
“I couldn’t tell you why,” Wilson said. “We just need to come with that kind of energy every single time. I think we get it in our heads that, ‘If we can beat them the second time … ’ I don’t know. We just need to bring it every time.”
It appeared Prep had that part figured out for the first part of the season. The Blue Griffins were on a roll at 8-4, hav-
ing won five of six when the calendar turned to October. A pair of tough five-game losses to Santa Fe Indian School and Raton started a 1-4 spiral that included a pair of district losses to leader Dulce and the Lady Dragons (8-10, 2-3). Prep was without Wilson and Sidney Crosby for the end of that skid as they went on college trips.
Upon their return, however, the Blue Griffins have put together two of their best matches in beating McCurdy on Saturday and Monte del Sol. Still, the hiccup put the onus on the senior-laden squad (five in all) to turn it around quickly — especially in the rematch with Monte del Sol. Prep head coach Kiran Bhakta wouldn’t call it a mustwin in front of his team, but he thought it.
“I didn’t want to put any more pressure on them, but, yeah, I kinda saw it as a playoff [match],” Bhakta said.
The pressure was even more intense when Monte del Sol used a 7-2 run to build a 20-15 lead in Game 1 on Lizbeth Nava’s dump kill over the Prep block. Leave it to a freshman to find the release valve.
Raelyn Gonzales recorded the first of just two kills on the night, but it brought Prep to within 21-17. Then, she went to the service line and had backto-back aces that fueled a fourpoint spurt to tie the score. The Lady Dragons, who were coming off losses to Pecos and Dulce, seemed to shrink at the sight of Prep’s growing confidence and committed three errors during a closing 4-0 Prep run.
Chela Butler, Monte del Sol head coach, noted a disturbing pattern in her team’s district play over the last three Octobers.
“We get to this point [in the season] — we beat Prep on the first go-around, then lose to them in the second — and our confidence gets down and we don’t know how to pick it up,” Butler said. “It’s the coach’s fault. I can’t find any button to push. The right button would be a nice one to push. We just can’t figure out how to get over that hump.”
In Game 2, Monte del Sol took an early 6-2 lead before Wilson took her turn at the service line and used a four-point run to tie up that also was highlighted by a pair of aces and a kill. Wilson took her turn to make her presence felt at the net with consecutive kills during a crucial 8-0 run that unknotted a 13-all score.
Wilson finished with nine kills and nine assists as she continued her long-standing role as a setter in the back row and a hitter in the front row. However, Wilson recognizes the dynamic element she brings when she starts to swing at defenses.
“I gotta switch that mental gear when I get up [to the front row],” Wilson said. “I have to be an aggressive player when I’m up here. I’m not when I’m in the back row, but I love hitting. I was always a hitter, but then sophomore year came along, and coach Kiran made me a setter. But thank God he did. I understand the game a lot more.”
Knowledge is power, and the knowledge that it’s now or never for Prep was the best tool it had in its possession.