When Rene Aafedt was in high school, getting sent to the corner had an added bonus – you got volleyballs hit at you.
The drill, a favorite of pioneering Valley High School coach Ann McKay, wasn’t designed to hurt or humiliate, but rather to build a hunger for what has become the backbone of a proud Vikings program propped up by state titles in 1983 and 1975: defense.
At Valley, where players taller than 5-feet-10 are a thing of legend, defense means survival. It is the great equalizer in a sport in which vertical prowess is often the first ability worshipped.
“What they lack in height, they have in heart; and sometimes that heart can carry you a lot further,” said Aafedt, who has a 215-39 record in 11 seasons as coach of her alma mater in Gilcrest and has never coached a 6-footer.
Under Aafedt, the Class 3A Vikings (22-3) are making their fourth consecutive trip to the state tournament, which begins today at the Denver Coliseum for all classifications and culminates Saturday with simultaneous finals at 7 p.m.
The Vikings finished second in 2006 and 2004 and third in 2005, and they did most of it through good serving, organized blocking and tenacious “dive on the floor and dig anything” defense.
They are the kind of moves typically followed by a drumroll and loud “ta-da!”
Considering every team with a net and a ball practices defense, why are the Vikings so good at it?
“It’s just throwing a ball onto a nearby court and say ‘Get a hand on it,”‘ Aafedt said. “When they do, you just praise them. It’s like they just won the lottery. You just see how much that means to them. Praise is just the biggest reward they can have. I think everybody wants that positive feedback. You do that one time and you do it again and they love it.”
They live for it.
“I get way excited,” said sophomore libero Savannah Garcia, who is all of 5-2. “It’s probably the most fun part of the game. Especially when you know you have hard hitters and you dig them every single time, and that throws their game off.”
And that’s a subtle white-flag moment the Vikings relish. When big hitters stop hitting and try to dink the ball in an effort to find holes in the Valley defense, the Vikings know they are winning the mental battle.
Often, the mental battle begins earlier. During warm-ups, the Vikings say they often perceive taller teams exuding excessive confidence after staring down their smaller foes.
“I think they just underestimate us,” said sophomore Sierra Bennett, a hard-swinging outside hitter who constantly amazes Aafedt with defensive abilities.
“It feels like teams look down or don’t really respect the short girls,” sophomore setter Sage Martinson said.
If Martinson and the rest of the young Vikings manage to conquer a wide-open 3A field, she’ll join her mother in history. Martinson’s mom, Joanna, was on Valley’s title winning team in 1975 – the first year the sport was sanctioned in Colorado.
The family lines and coaching lines, which most credit to coach McKay’s influence, still run deep.
Rene Aafedt, whose maiden name is Chacon and is a cousin of former Rockies pitcher Shawn Chacon, is related in some small way to many of her players, or she played with their parents.
Coaches also hang everywhere on the Valley family tree, including current Lewis-Palmer coach and 1977 Valley graduate Susan Odenbaugh. Michalea Odenbaugh, a sophomore on the Valley team, is related.
“There’s a huge tradition there. That’s what you’re seeing right now,” Susan Odenbaugh said.
Today at the Denver Coliseum, that tradition will be carried by Garcia, Bennett, Martinson and Odenbaugh. It will also depend heavily on the play of sophomore Billie Jo McMurren, senior Courtney Wright, senior Caiti Hladky, sophomore Sarah Kawata and 5-4 senior Shanae Gonzales.
There will be lots of screaming. Hitting. Jumping. And the Vikings will be throwing themselves on the floor all in an attempt to hoist the 3A trophy over their heads.
Ta-da!
Post Preps volleyball playoff capsules
CLASS 5A
“Surprise” is a relative term here. Seven of the eight teams were preseason top eight, which makes sixth-seeded Highlands Ranch (24-2) the group’s “outsider.” The defending champions from Eaglecrest (24-2) return. The third-seeded Raptors are looking up at Lewis-Palmer (25-1), which is banged up, according to coach Susan Odenbaugh. Then there’s Eaglecrest’s main rival, Grandview (26-0), which has done a remarkable job under coach Patty Childress this season despite losing a big group of top-shelf talent to graduation. Despite making the state field for the first time since 1975, No. 7 Columbine (22-4) isn’t surprised by its accomplishment, said coach Kathy Miks. Although the faces are familiar, the story line could be anything but. There are fewer top individuals but better teams.
CLASS 4A
Coaches in the vaunted Northern League were concerned in August that Berthoud could emerge from uncertainty with arguably its strongest team since winning state in 2000. It happened. The Spartans (26-0) survived the most talented league in the state and have the top seed overall. That makes Pool I a very familiar place. Joining Berthoud are rivals Mountain View (22-4) and Longmont (21-5). Defending champion Battle Mountain (23-3) returns and is in an intriguing Pool II, headed up by Cheyenne Mountain (24-2) and Regis (22-4), a deceptive, out-of-the-woodwork No. 3 seed. The Raiders played a 5A schedule and are unbeaten against 4A competition.
CLASS 3A
It’s hard to think of a season when a three-time defending champion returned and people were optimistic. Colorado Springs Christian (19-7) is back, but after graduating an epic class of talent, the Lions aren’t considered queens of the class anymore. Simply put, 3A hasn’t been this wide open in years. Six of the eight teams were preseason top 10, but they have all taken shots and delivered them to one another. As CSCS ruled, most of these programs, especially Valley, Faith Christian and Lamar, have been improving greatly and getting loads of experience for this very situation. The time is now. Enjoy.
CLASS 2A
Cubs win! It could be the headline Sunday morning for top-seeded Simla (26-0), which handed defending champion Hoehne (25-1) its first loss of the season last week to earn the top seed at state. The Cubs were a No. 3 seed last season, loaded with juniors and they talked of setting the table for a 2007 run. Here it is. Second-seeded Sangre de Cristo (25-0) has become a staple at state, and the Thunderbirds have an impressive list of wins to their name this season, such as Fowler, Swink and fourth-seeded Burlington (23-3). In terms of state titles won, the 2A field has the smallest collection of silverware of the five classifications.
CLASS 1A
Subplots abound in the state’s smallest classification. Fleming (27-0) began the preseason ranked No. 1 and hasn’t wavered. It’s a remarkable turnaround for a program that was 2-17 in 2004. The Wildcats are the top seed in state and sit atop a loaded Pool I that includes one of the more accomplished programs, fifth-seeded Flagler (21-4). Under longtime coach Pam Fagerlund, the Panthers have four state titles. Not far behind in terms of coaching longevity and success is third-seeded Otis (22-4), which has two state title since 1999 under coach Bonnie Wallin-Kuntz. Defending state champion Kit Carson did not make the field.
By Brian Forbes
