The Mustangs, however, polished up both their image and record by winning the competitive Bruin Classic tournament. Ponderosa swept all five of its opponents, including host Cherry Creek in the championship final, 25-14, 25-23.
Ponderosa jumped out to a 5-1 lead in the first set, with Tori Minovich and Carly Boatwright putting down kills from the right antenna. The Bruins used some hits from outside hitter Victoria Kirkemo and setter/hitter Hannah George to cut Ponderosa’s lead to 13-11. Ponderosa regained control behind the serving of outside hitter Becky Stewart and middle blocker Carly Boatwright, plus some late kills from setter Hannah Hoffman.
The Mustangs handcuffed Creek’s Jessica Aschenbrenner. She had wrecked Durango with five kills in the first set, but she didn’t have one against Ponderosa, until the second set. Kirkemo supplied the punch with four kills in the second set and Katie Jackson had a couple. With three kills apiece, George and Jackson were second on the team behind Kirkemo’s six, but the Bruins weren’t the fired-up team that came back to beat Doherty in the semifinals.
"I don’t think we were ready to play," George said. "We were off for three hours (after beating Doherty) and were laying around. We just kind of walked on the court and thought it would be easy. In the second game, we stepped it up and couldn’t hold onto the lead (22-18) at the end."
On the other side, the 5-foot-6 Stewart (five kills, three aces) was on fire without a hitting error.
"I do what I can," Stewart said. "I’ve been working on my vertical, making sure I can level up with the other outside hitters. One of my main things is I’m very ‘shotty.’ I hit certain spots on the court where other players aren’t. I know how to get it off the block."
Stewart’s defense was crucial on the match-winning point, when she dug a hard hit and Kelsye Van Denend tooled the block from the left side to give Ponderosa the win. Libero Kendall Howard, a 5-6 senior, also was a defensive standout with 14 digs. She was picked as the Colorado player of the week by MaxPreps and the American Volleyball Coaches Association.
"She is a game-changer," Mustangs coach Rob Graham said of Howard. "We know we’re a good team, but we’re a mediocre team without her. When we scrimmaged this summer and she wasn’t there, we lost. They beat us up and Kendall Howard wasn’t there."
One of Howard’s best plays didn’t count, though. She had dug the ball, but the set went straight up and nobody made a move to hit it. Howard raced out of the back row and got the ball up, but her momentum carried her over the center line.
"It definitely was frustrating when I slid under the net," she said. "You sacrifice your body parts for the team."
Graham’
s satisfying finish
Winning the tournament was not the only high point for Ponderosa. The Mustangs placed four players on the all-tournament team. As a libero, Howard plays a position that often gets overlooked in such votes. And Stewart is a lot shorter than other players. But Graham credited Stewart with reviving the Mustangs after a good start from Minovich and Boatwright.
"We said the one thing that’s worked is swinging aggressively, because our tips are not there at all," Graham said. "Becky, little Becky, she started ripping balls and that made the difference. She’s really difficult to block. She’s obviously very undersized, but she’s got a lively arm and she’s smart with it."
Eye black from eye block
Ponderosa outside hitter Caitie Breaux is a very good attacker, leading the Mustangs with six kills against Cherry Creek. She also is highly effective on the block, especially an outside hitter and had a most unusual block in the championship match. Breaux took a hard hit in her eye socket but the ball carried back over the net and fell in for a Ponderosa point. That part of Breaux’s face was a bit bruised and blackened, but she can regard it as the mark of a tournament champion.
Tough draw for Tigers
Lakewood, coached by Liz Armbrustmacher, entered the Bruin Classic with a fine 5-1 record, but the Tigers were placed in the toughest pool in the tournament. Lakewood was swept by Doherty, but made it tough on Fort Collins and Heritage, going to three sets in each. The Tigers, though, kept going ahead by beating Horizon 25-21, 27-25 in the Silver Bracket crossover and then sweeping Fort Collins 25-19, 25-19 for the Silver championship. Rachel Gillcrist also was recognized by other coaches for her play.
Blackjack team
The Bruin Classic had a list of 21 players for its all-tournament team, but they were standouts and quite deserving.
Here’s who was recognized: Carly Boatwright, Ponderosa; Jessica Aschenbrenner, Cherry Creek; Kelsey English, Doherty; Lauren Flanagan, Horizon; Lexi Fowler, Cherry Creek; Hannah George, Cherry Creek; Rachel Gillcrist, Lakewood; Krista Hilverding, Pomona; Hannah Hoffman, Ponderosa; Kendall Howard, Ponderosa; Sarah Jaeckel, Heritage; Michie Johnson, Rocky Mountain; Sloan Lovett, Durango; Tonya Mulkey, Durango; Hannah Ney, Rocky Mountain; Taylor Simpson, Doherty; Laura Steiner, Fort Collins; Becky Stewart, Ponderosa; Neely Surmeier, Durango.
Taylor Simpson, a 6-2 junior outside hitter from third-place Doherty, was chosen the MVP.
Recruiting commitments
Two players on the all-tournament list above have decided on their colleges. Lexi Fowler, a setter for Cherry Creek, is headed to South Dakota State. Rachel Gillcrist of Lakewood pledged to St. Mary’s College and Sarah Jaeckel, an impact outside hitter for Heritage, will play at the University of Seattle.
Tournament time
Alameda will be hosting a tournament on Saturday. The Pirates are bringing in Adams City, Arvada, Denver West, Jefferson, Kent Denver, Lincoln, St. Mary’s Academy and Thornton. Action will begin at 9 a.m. Crowley County also hosts a round-robin event that includes Kim, Hoehne, Limon and Las Animas.
