While Camp Verde High School’s natural athletes kept its varsity volleyball team in all three of its season-opening games at Sedona Red Rock High School, mistakes were the Cowboys’ ultimate undoing as they fell in three straight,
25-14, 25-13 and 25-18.
“We missed five serves the last game,” said second-year CVHS head coach Dan Gagnon. “That’s not improving from game to game; it’s getting worse.”
Junior middle hitter Tiauna Day kept the score within two points the final game with an unreturnable finesse kill.
Senior Dusty Dowdle’s two kills closed the gap further within a point on two separate occasions.
She would even tie the game, 8-8, on a strong block at the net of an over-the-shoulder tap by SRRHS senior Annie Parrella.
A net serve gave the ball, and the lead, right back to the Scorpions. Net serves would keep the Cowboys from drawing any closer than a three-point margin the rest of the way.
Net serves also topped a long list of unforced errors to be focused on by a coach who, with the help of just two volunteer assistants, has no choice but to divide his attention between his varsity and JV teams.
It was a much better effort than the Cowboys’ opening scrimmage Aug. 27 at Scottsdale Preparatory Academy, in which “we hadn’t been organized well enough, long enough to really do well at all,” Gagnon said. “Which is fine; that’s to be expected.”
Despite the support of junior Shelby Ritzenthaler, with just sophomore Hannah Collins the only other varsity reserve available off the bench, the four CVHS starting seniors did what could be expected of experienced athletes playing two other sports with little time to focus on preseason preparation.
For the full story and season schedule, please see the Wednesday, Sept. 9, issue of the Camp Verde Journal.
