The Española Valley High School volleyball team is getting better, but they still don’t have enough to beat the Pojoaque Elkettes.
The Sundevils avenged an early-season 3-0 loss to Peñasco when they defeated that team 3-1 Sept. 23. Two days later they had another rematch — this time against Pojoaque, who had trampled Española 3-0 Sept. 16.
But revenge was not to be for the Sundevils. Pojoaque pounded them 25-12, 25-15 and 25-20. The Elkettes are now 8-0, while the Sundevils fell to 2-9 overall.
In the first game, the Sundevils never scored more than two consecutive points, while the Elkettes used two sustained service runs to close out the game.
Pojoaque was leading 15-11 when the Elkettes rattled off six straight points behind the service of Janelle Roybal. After a single Sundevil point, Pojoaque freshman Cara Salazar served out the game for a 25-12 Pojoaque victory.
In the second game, it was Española’s service that prevented any hopes of a comeback. Pojoaque was leading 6-5 when the Sundevils committed four consecutive service errors, helping the Elkettes pull away to a 16-9 lead. They won 25-15 and took a 2-0 lead in the match.
“It was definitely our own errors that beat us,” Española coach Garry Maskaly said. “They’re still not really believing that we can play as well as we can.”
In the third game, the time was ripe for Española to pick up a victory in at least one game. The confident Elkettes were loose and having fun. The Sundevils actually led 8-7 after a kill by freshman Madlyn Romero, but an inability to return service kept the Sundevils from rising up and taking advantage of the situation.
Pojoaque libero Miquela Lovato went to the service line and the Sundevils surrendered eight straight points to fall behind 15-8; two service errors allowed the Elkettes to take a 24-16 lead.
Española managed a four-point run to make the final score 25-20, but the Elkettes finished the game while smiling and horsing around. Even the normally intense Pojoaque coach, Brian Ainsworth, smiled and chuckled as his team experimented with jump serving and running experimental combinations at the net.
“We wanted to ease some of the tension from the weekend,” Ainsworth said.
The Elkettes had successfully defended their championship title at the Tournament of Champions Sept. 20, with an intense 3-2 victory over Piedra Vista.
The pressure was back on the Elkettes this week. They hosted Piedra Vista Monday in a rematch of the championship game, and they traveled Tuesday to Moriarty to take on the Class AAAA Pintos, who are 9-2 and currently have an eight-match winning streak against strong competition.
Those two tough matches are just a prelude to the beginning of District 2AAA play. The Elkettes open district play when they host Robertson Thursday (10/2); they’ll finish the week Saturday with their second district game at Santa Fe Indian School.
“We’ve got to work hard on being able to set the middle,” Ainsworth said. “The timing is off between our setter (Marissa Romero) and the hitters. We are going to work on getting her where she needs to be.”
The Sundevils also begin district play this week. Española will play District 2AAAA rival Capital High School Wednesday (10/1) and travel to Taos Saturday.
Española faced Pojoaque without outside hitter Renee Roybal, who was nursing a pulled muscle. Maskaly said he expected her back Monday. Senior Rachel Sandoval is still recovering from a sore shoulder.
Healthy or not, the Sundevils need to handle the opposing team’s service better if they are to advance in district play.
“We lose confidence on our serve receive and we’re working on that,” Maskaly said. “Getting them to believe in themselves, especially the younger players, is most important.”