By Eric Butler
MaxPreps.com
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Volleyball: Kurtz Goes Wild
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It's not quite as common as before, back in the days of non-rally scoring, to have a star volleyball player pile up a preposterous number of kills. But St. Pius senior Caroline Kurtz did just that on Thursday (Oct. 5) in the Sartans' 25-22, 27-25, 21-25, 25-20 victory over Class 4A's top-ranked Moriarty Pintos.
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Kurtz racked up 34 kills in a District 5-4A showdown between the squads. It was a rematch of a state playoff quarterfinal match, which Moriarty won, last year and of a four-game victory by the Pintos in the APS tournament semifinals earlier this season.
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In the APS contest, Kurtz had 15 kills. This time: All Kurtz, all the time.
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"She was just on fire. Every time she went for a swing, it was almost a guaranteed kill," said St. Pius coach Ashley Cook of Kurtz, who also racked up 24 digs. "I told my setter to just keep setting her because they couldn't do anything."
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Another No. 1 fell on the same night when Estancia traveled to Texico in a Class 2A contest.
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Although the Bears had twice previously beaten the Wolverines, this time it was No. 2 Texico that came out with a thrilling 26-24, 25-18, 19-25, 20-25, 15-13 victory. The winning margin, in the end, came in the form of two serving aces from Wolverines' sophomore Jaryse Harris. It was Harris, ironically, who was wiping away tears between games four and five.
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"I was a little frustrated with myself because I knew I could do better. I was just trying to shake off all the other plays I messed up on," said Harris of her emotions just before the fifth game.
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"I threw the towel over her head and said to leave it on there until I saw a smile," Texico coach Mike Littlejohn said.
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In other volleyball action, Manzano slowly but surely may be making its way into the ranks of contenders in Class 5A. For the second time this season, the sixth-ranked Monarchs beat 4th-rated Eldorado. This time, it was a sweep for Manzano on Saturday (Oct. 7) in a match-up of district rivals.
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One significant non-district, in fact non-class, tussle also took place before the week was over. Defending Class 5A champ Rio Rancho hosted Class 4A Espanola Valley on Saturday. Although the underdog Sundevils, who hope to vie for a 4A title, did take one game, it was the Rams who won in four.
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Earlier in the week, Rio Rancho (12-1) established itself as the District 1-5A team to beat by easily disposing of rival Cibola 25-17, 25-13, 25-16. The Rams were led by Ashley Roades' seven kills while teammates Colleen Connelly and Jori Morrison added four each.
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Football: No. 2 vs. No. 3 in Class 5A Highlights Action
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It's been a banner year thus far for Cibola under new coach Judge Chavez. But a catfight between Chavez' Cougars and some tough Wildcats went the way of Clovis on Saturday as Cibola suffered its first defeat of the year.
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In a battle between two of the top three ranked 5A teams in the state, Clovis (5-2) got 177 yards from running back Brian Mead including a crucial 16-yard touchdown jaunt in the fourth quarter as the 'Cats won 21-13 in Albuquerque.
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Second-ranked Cibola (5-1) fell behind 14-0 at halftime to the vistors after a pair of Mead TD runs - one in each of the first two quarters. But a Jonathan Mader four-yard run trimmed the lead in half and then a five-yard scoring rush by Mader, the Cougars' quarterback, gave the hosts the chance to tie. But the extra-point kick on Cibola's second touchdown, early in the fourth quarter, failed and third-ranked Clovis then went on the game-clinching drive - greatly aided by a roughing-the-kicker penalty on one punt attempt.
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Much of the state's gridiron teams launched into district schedules in earnest during the week.
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Highland got off to a solid start in District 5-5A as the Hornets beat back Manzano, 20-6, in Albuquerque Thursday night. Tony McCoy rushed for an even 100 yards and a pair of touchdowns for Highland (5-1, 1-0), which also got 138 yards passing from quarterback Tim Medina. For slumping Manzano (2-4, 0-1), the lone score came when Adam Jaramillo hit Nick Smith for an 80-yard scoring pass in the fourth quarter.
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Also on Thursday, the confidence of Alamogordo (6-1, 1-0 in 3-5A) was brimming just a little bit more following a 27-14 road victory over Las Cruces (3-4, 0-1) in a district opener. After a scoreless third quarter, with the visiting Tigers maintaining a 14-7 lead, Alamogordo achieved separation when running back Carlos De La Cruz broke away from the Bulldawgs defense for a 35-yard touchdown run.
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Alamogordo plays defending state champion Mayfield in a district showdown. The Trojans tuned up for the big game by hammering city-rival Onate 33-7 in Las Cruces on Friday night (Oct. 6). The Trojans were paced by quarterback Matthew Sandoval's two rushing touchdowns in the second half as Mayfield (7-0, 1-0) pulled away from a 14-0 halftime advantage over the Knights (4-3, 0-1).
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Also on Friday, La Cueva (3-3, 1-0 in 2-5A) opened its district slate by beating Valley (2-4, 0-1) by a 35-27 count. A methodical, grinding running game was the key for the Bears - who pounded away for 355 yards on a total of 50 carries in the game. The Vikings had a different way of keeping the game close as Vally quarterback Chris Voller passed for 263 yards against the La Cueva defense.