The Santa Fe Demons will face off against the Sandia Matadors at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday.
Santa Fe is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of New Mexico's top teams: La Cueva, who was ranked third in their home state at the time (Santa Fe was ranked eighth). Santa Fe came up short against La Cueva on Tuesday, falling 3-0. The Demons haven't had much luck with the Bears recently, as the team's come up short the last five times they've met.
Santa Fe was was forced to take the loss, but they sure made La Cueva work for it, especially in the third set. The match finished with set scores of 25-22, 25-18, 28-26.
Sandia extended their winning streak to three games thanks to a huge performance from Leanne Romero. Sandia blew past Eldorado 3-0 on Tuesday thanks in part to Romero, who had seven digs and two aces. She is also on a roll when it comes to assists, as she's now posted 16 or more in the last three games she's played.
The match was exciting from start to finish, as two sets needed extra rallies to gain a two-point lead. The match finished with set scores of 25-18, 27-25, 28-26.
Sandia kept the net locked down and finished the game with ten blocks. That's the most blocks they've posted since back in October of 2023.
Santa Fe's loss ended an 11-game streak of wins at home dating back to last season and dropped them to 17-5. As for Sandia, they are on a roll lately: they've won seven of their last eight contests, which provided a nice bump to their 10-12 record this season.
Here's a few offensive stats to keep an eye on ahead of Saturday's game: Santa Fe has really dialed in their serving this season, having averaged 8.6 aces per game. However, it's not like Sandia struggles in that department as they've been averaging 8.8. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Santa Fe came up short against Sandia in their previous matchup back in October, falling 3-1. Will Santa Fe have more luck at home instead of on the road? Check MaxPreps after the match for a full breakdown of the game, commentary, and other volleyball content.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
