They are the team with the biggest reputation, the most highly rated recruit and the longest state championship winning streak. So, Colorado Springs Christian naturally will attract much of the attention at this week’s state tournament, vying for its sixth consecutive Class 3A title. The state tournament begins in all five classifications at 8 a.m. Friday at the Denver Coliseum. (Click
for the complete schedule.)
The Lions swept all three matches while playing at home in regionals, but Middle Park won its other two matches to also qualify for state.
"We were pretty ‘on’ (Saturday); the girls were pretty fired up to play," Lions coach Mike Broekhuis said. "I haven’t seen the stats, but I’m sure our kills were way up above average. I’m very pleased with the way we attacked the ball (Saturday)."
Morgan Broekhuis, Colorado Springs Christian
File photo by Ray Chen
The Lions cruised even without a normal rotation in their final match, against Monte Vista. Brianne VandeGriend, their standout outside hitter and Alabama recruit, sat on the bench. She has achy knees, a condition aggravated by a defensive move in Colorado Springs Christian’s second match. VandeGriend, a 6-foot senior, is one of the hardest hitters in the state.
As usual, the Lions were led by 6-5 hitter/setter Morgan Broekhuis, the daughter of the coach and a Nebraska recruit. The Lions are 25-0, yet don’t look complacent.
"We are more than ready," coach Broekhuis said. "The girls have been waiting for this all year long."
Valley is the other undefeated team in Class 3A, and the Vikings are a much shorter squad but play as if they have six liberos. Faith Christian, with Emily Weingartner, is another successful defensive team, although the Eagles finished second to Bayfield in Region D.
"Our key is obviously getting the ball up to the front row," Broekhuis said. "If we get the ball to the front row like we like it, I don’t care how good teams are digging us, they’re not going to dig us for very long."
Around the state
In Class 5A, the surprises came in Region C, where host Chatfield was eliminated decisively by Arapahoe and Doherty, teams entering last week with a combined loss mark of 12, while the Chargers had only three defeats and were riding a 15-match winning streak.
Arapahoe vaulted up to regional champion after qualifying second in its district to Pine Creek. The Warriors are led by Shelby Schacher (looking for a college scholarship again after her initial commitment to North Carolina-Wilmington fell through) and Tanya Marvi. Pairings in Region C, with Chatfield and Ralston Valley, and Region A, with Chaparral and Ponderosa, were questioned for not having been adjusted to avoid matching two quality league rivals. History repeated in Region A, as Chaparral won the first two sets against the Mustangs, but won in five, 24-26, 21-25, 25-19, 25-21, 15-11.
In Class 4A, undefeated Cheyenne Mountain won Region A, as did Roosevelt (25-1) in Region C and Mullen in Region B. It seemed that defending champion Cheyenne Mountain might take some lumps this season after graduating its productive middles and setter, but outside hitter Kendall Gaffney, right-side Tasha Ray and sophomore middle blocker Janae Vander Ploeg have sparked the Indians.
Meanwhile, Longmont had to work hard winning Region D, beating second-place finisher Lewis-Palmer 23-25, 25-22, 25-21, 27-25.
Elsewhere in 3A, Eaton (22-3) triumphed in a very competitive Region D, beating out St.Mary’s (22-3) and eliminating The Classical Academy and Holy Family, both state qualifiers last season. Bayfield (23-1) is the least-known regional champ, coming from the Intermountain League, but the Wolverines have compiled quality wins over Faith Christian, Lamar and St. Mary’s.
In 2A, another difficult Region D had Simla (20-4) handing defending state champion Fowler its first loss of the season and eliminating Hoehne and Kiowa. Resurrection Christian (24-2) also finished ahead of Akron (24-2) in Region B. Otis (25-0) and Fleming (24-3) maintained their reputations with regional titles in Class A. They finished second and first, respectively, in state last season. North Park (21-5) avenged a district tournament loss to Dove Creek and that helped eliminate the Bulldogs, as Mountain Valley (22-3) finished second in Region A. Springfield, another state qualifier from last season, also was eliminated in Region B by McClave (18-7) and Wiley (18-6).
Eleventh heaven
The next note below lists many of the volleyball seniors who have signed a letter of intent this week. As of this writing however, only two local players from the Class of 2011 have college commitments and they both play for the Colorado Juniors club.
Elsa Krieg, a middle blocker for Middle Park, has chosen New Mexico as her college team and Ashley Peak, a libero for Colorado Springs Christian, has opted for UTEP. Krieg showed plenty of initiative in unofficially visiting several colleges (Oregon State, Tennessee, Utah and Wyoming), but seized on her first offer, from the Lobos.
"The coaches were really up-front with me; they were really honest," Krieg said. "I felt New Mexico was a really good fit and I didn’t want it to pass me by. I thought I might have been hesitant just because I was jumping into it, but it’s a good fit. I feel comfortable there and I love the school and the coaches, and the girls are awesome."
A four-year starting libero, Peak initially was put off by the Miners, but she still pursued one of her top five choices.
"My family lives down there and they wanted me to go see the college," Peak said. "I had emailed (UTEP) before and they told me that they didn’t want a libero for 2011."
Peak wasn’t deterred by this initial reaction and attended a UTEP camp.
"I went down there and played. After three days, (coach Ken Murphy) talked to my mom and took me on a campus tour for about five hours. Then at the end, he offered me a scholarship."
Peak also had offers from Iowa and Seattle.
State strong for college recruits
Colorado has some of the best high school and club volleyball in the nation. A list of collegiately committed players follows below.
Lauren Alejo, The Classical Academy, Coastal Carolina; Emily Alexis, Prairie View, Colorado; Morgan Broekhuis, Colorado Springs Christian, Nebraska; Kayla Collier-Vigil, ThunderRidge, Metro State; Julie Cox, Cherokee Trail, Colorado State-Pueblo; Erica Denney, Grandview, Penn State; Lauren Flanagan, Horizon, Regis; Lexi Fowler, Cherry Creek, South Dakota State; Kelsey Freeman, Mullen, Sacred Heart; Allie Friewald, Mullen, Texas A&M;
Kendall Gaffney, Cheyenne Mountain, Bryant; Rachel Gillcrist, Lakewood, St. Mary’s College; Katie Jackson, Cherry Creek, Franklin Pierce; Sarah Jaeckel, Heritage, Seattle; Rachel Keyes, Mullen, Wyoming; Rachel Kosbab, Pine Creek, St. Thomas; Rianne Lang, ThunderRidge, Wingate; Danica Lawrence, Columbine, Colorado-Colorado Springs; Skylar Lewandowski, Rampart, Colorado-Colorado Springs; Christi Limpert, Lewis-Palmer, Southeastern; Nikki Lindow, Centaurus, Colorado; Laura Loosbrock, Alamosa, Adams State; Sage Martinson, Roosevelt; Regis; Mikinzie Moydell, Chaparral, Penn State;
Amy Parlier, Fairview, North Carolina; Heather Poll, Colo. Springs Christian, Bethany College; Kristen Sciacca, Lewis-Palmer, Fresno State; Kelsey Snider, Pomona, Colorado State; Erin Stock, Coronado, Fresno State; Megan Tapia, Pueblo South, Adams State; Alex Turgeon, Denver Academy, Denver; Kelly Tycksen, Faith Christian, Simpson; Brianne VandeGriend, Colorado Springs Christian, Alabama; Hannah Walker, Colorado Springs Christian, Colorado; Emily Weingartner, Faith Christian, BIOLA; Erica Winkler, Highlands Ranch, San Diego State.
Beating hunger and ticket lines
Hundreds of volleyball players are after a state championship this week, but far more people are hungry for a basic need: food. The Colorado High School Activities Association, which runs the state tournament, will be collecting non-perishable food items both tournament days.
Everyone, including players, coaches, referees, media and fans, who walks into the Denver Coliseum on Friday and Saturday is being asked by CHSAA to bring canned goods and non-perishable food and donate them to Food Bank of the Rockies. The items will be collected at the entrances to the arena.
"This food drive is a simple way to help those less fortunate in our communities," CHSAA Assistant Commissioner Bethany Schott said in a statement released this week. "With all the people who enjoy high school sports, this is a way we can make an impact for Food Bank of the Rockies."
Another new wrinkle for CHSAAA that should find favor with fans is the opportunity to buy tournament tickets online at
