The Escalante Lady Lobos are the lone representative from Rio Arriba County in the upcoming state volleyball championships. And a year after losing a legendary senior class, the Lobos appear to be continuing on quite finely.
The Lobos (16-7, 10-0 in district) earned the No. 6 seed in 2A and hit the tournament on a 10-match win streak. Last year, they were the No. 5 seed, but were upset in the first round and again in their first consolation bracket to go home early.
Escalante will play No. 11 seed Tatum (10-12, 5-3) in the first round at Rio Rancho High School at noon on Thursday. The two teams have not played any common opponents this year. Two years ago, Escalante knocked Tatum out of the state tournament in a thrilling five-set late-night match.
The winner of that match will play No. 3 Tularosa (16-7, 6-2) later in the afternoon in the second round. The loser will play the next morning in the consolation bracket to face the loser between No. 4 Laguna-Acoma (18-5, 6-0) and whichever team faces them in the second round.
Pojoaque Valley (12-11, 6-2) was perhaps surprisingly snubbed from the field in 4A. The Elkettes finished 6-2 in their district, and won the first set in both of their matches against district champion and No. 5 seed Los Alamos. In their second meeting, they went up two sets to one before falling, a loss that may have kept them out of the tournament.
Pojoaque battled injuries in the early part of the season, having to at one point turn to a new setter who had never played the position before. The losses they suffered in that stretch, at challenging road tournaments, were likely the difference.
McCurdy (13-7, 7-3) came close but missed the field in 2A. After winning nine of 10 matches, they lost the last two. A late-season loss to Questa, who earned the No. 10 seed, slid them to third in the district where a win likely would have put them in the field.