Ganado, St. Michael, Red Mesa fall short in playoffs

PHOENIX

Many schools from the Nation made it to the volleyball state playoffs held in Phoenix.

Red Mesa High, St. Michaels Indian School and Rock Point High made the bracket in the 1A division while Ganado High was the only rez school to qualify at the 2A level.

Rock Point went on to win the 1A state title while the other teams fell short but made their coaches and fans proud.

2A

This was Ganado’s second year playing in the 2A Conference, but its first year competing due to the coronavirus pandemic. Although Ganado still played some familiar faces like Tuba City and Winslow, it fought some new teams this year, all the while contending against the pandemic.

Ganado had a relatively successful season with 12 victories, being ranked No. 3 in the 2A North Region and coming in third place at the conference tournament.

Ganado competed against top-seed Chandler Prep in the first round. The team played its hardest but were defeated by the Lady Titans that took all three sets.

Ganado coach Jerome Burns said his girls played hard and gave credit to Callista Shepherd for helping to keep the ball moving and scoring some kills on the side.

“We didn’t do well in all three sets, we didn’t execute as well as we had hoped,” Burns said. “But I think it’s always good to end up in the state tournament at the end of the season.

“It shows the work that the girls put in this fall, it does pay off,” Burns added.

Although their time at Phoenix was short, Burns still credits the girls for doing a good job in getting them into the playoffs, always playing a good game and getting to play during a pandemic. He said they would miss the six seniors that will be graduating and has faith that the new incoming team next year will be prepared.

1A

For the 1A division, the Rock Point Lady Cougars were able to prevail all the way and win the championships – a first in their history.

The St. Michaels Lady Cardinals played on Friday but didn’t last long in the first round. The No. 3 team in the 1A North came up against the Joseph City Lady Wildcats, the No. 3 team from Central.

It was a close match with the first set going overtime until the Lady Wildcats pulled a victory with 27-25. The Lady Cardinals kept fighting but lost all three sets and were eliminated from the conference.

Still, the fans cheered on the team, proud of their accomplishment of making it to state despite the difficulties of the year.

The other 1A team in the running was Red Mesa. Red Mesa was ranked No. 2 in the 1A North and went up against the Lincoln Prep Lady Lightnings, the No. 3 team from 1A east.

It was a close game with Red Mesa winning the first set 25-19, but the Lady Lightnings took the second set with 25-22. Red Mesa came roaring back winning the third set 25-16 and the fourth set 25-10. The team won the first match and went on to the quarterfinals.

In their first game, junior Abigail Begay led the team with aces. Junior Aubrey Redmustache made one ace and three blocks and senior Courtney Gray made one of the few kills of the game.

Red Mesa’s next opponent was Joseph City as well. The Red Mesa girls put up a fight but would lose all three sets to the Lady Wildcats. They came close to claiming the third set and prolonging the game but fell short.

Red Mesa ended its season at state to the cheer of fans that had followed them through its successful season.

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