Coach Tim McHale, right, is looking to go out with a state championship this season.
Courtesy photo
There are times when a team has a little more to play for than everyone else.
The four Division I girls volleyball teams remaining are all quality programs and all have reason to be favored to win it all.
Third-seeded
Xavier College Prep (Phoenix), however, has that extra weight of trying to send out coach Tim McHale as a champion after 23 years of being involved in the program one way or another.
It was clear on Thursday there was no chance the Gators were going to lose in McHale's final home match when they swept No. 11 Desert Vista 25-20, 25-11, 25-20.
"We played as one and tonight showed us what we can do when we do that," senior middle blocker
Megan O'Sullivan said. "We are all sad but then again it motivates us well. We wanted to make it special."
The win pits Xavier against No. 2 Hamilton on Saturday at 4 p.m. at Mesquite High for the semifinals. Top-ranked Horizon plays No. 4 Mountain Ridge afterward. The winners advance to Tuesday's championship game.
McHale, who has guided the Gators to five big-school titles since 2005, said he is doing everything he can to avoid making the final weeks of the season about him — but it has been hard.
"I try to forget about it but it comes up," McHale said. "There are little moments where it is the seniors (and his) last home match and everyone talks about it."
The Gators played a clean match against Desert Vista and if they can sustain that level it could end up being a magical finish.
"Our goal is return that first volley, go hard and go fast and we have been doing that well in the second half of the season," senior
Amanda Benson said. "If we keep that up we will be hard to beat."
O'Sullivan said the team is coming together at the right time.
"If we play like we did (against Desert Vista) with our first-ball efficiency we will put up a good fight for sure," O'Sullivan said.
Jason P. Skoda, a former Arizona Republic and current Ahwatukee Foothills News staff writer, is an 18-year sports writing veteran. Contact him at jskoda1024@aol.com or 480-272-2449.
