It was an unfortunate senior night for Camp Verde on Oct. 23, as the Cowboys lost to Northland Prep 3 to 0.
“Mentally, it was not one of our best showings because I felt like they struggled with regaining their confidence,”
Camp Verde coach Britney Armstrong said. “I think what lost us the game tonight was our mental focus as a team.”
Northland Prep jumped out to a lead in the first set against Camp Verde and controlled the match early on.
Camp Verde attempted to come back but was unable to catch Northland Prep and lost the first set 25-14.
The second set was more intense as the crowd got more involved when Cowboys players hustled all over the court.
Northland Prep led throughout the match but was unable to pull away from Camp Verde.
The game was delayed several minutes during the second set as Camp Verde’s scoreboard started malfunctioning.
Once order was restored, Northland Prep won the second set by defeating Camp Verde 25-20.
Northland Prep won the third set 25-16 to complete the sweep over Camp Verde.
It was an emotional night for Camp Verde as seniors Rachel Stockseth and Sara Jewell played their final home games as Cowboys.
“I choose to have relationships with my girls and that can be a hard thing when it is time to let them go,” Armstrong said. “ We are going to miss both of these girls immensely next season.”
Jewell and Stockseth have been two of Camp Verde’s top athletes during their four years as Cowboys.
“Sara has played volleyball for four years at Camp Verde and she is one of the most dedicated young ladies that I have seen,” Armstrong said. “Sara always comes out in the summer, she attends Northern Arizona University camps and she spends a ton of time working on her game outside of practice.
For Stockseth, the focus now shifts to softball season where the Cowboys made it all the way to the state championship last season.
“Rachel’s passion is softball as she received a softball scholarship but she is such a great all-around athlete,” Armstrong said. “We have had her for a couple years and she really enjoys the girls and competing with them,” Armstrong said.
Armstrong believes that both of her seniors brought their own perspective to the Cowboys this season.
“Rachel is our strong competitor, she has competed on many high levels such as club softball and at the high school level,” Armstrong said. “She brings an intense level of competition along with a mentality of being all in and never quitting.”
While Stockseth gave the Cowboys an edge, Armstrong considered Jewell to be the team’s sweetheart.
“Despite having an injured knee for half of the season, she did not miss a single one of our practices,” Armstrong said. “Every practice and every tournament she would keep stats so I would say she is the most selfless teammate that I have seen.”
With the loss, Camp Verde drops to 5-12 this season.
On Thursday, Oct. 25, Camp Verde played the final game of their season against Glendale Prep Academy.
While Camp Verde’s season is over, it is never too early for the Cowboys to focus on next year’s volleyball team.
“We have come leaps and bounds from the beginning of the season so this year has been successful,” Armstrong said. “We know what we need to work on and we will come back stronger next season.”
