Outside of their own locker room, no one saw this coming.
The Akron volleyball team, which didn’t even make it out of districts a year ago, had a stellar performance at the opening day of the Class 2A state volleyball tournament Friday.
The fifth-seeded Rams stormed past No. 4 seed Sangre de Cristro (25-22, 25-18, 25-22) and top-seeded Simla (25-22, 19-25, 25-21, 25-13) at the Denver Coliseum.
“I have a strong group of girls,” Akron coach Lindsay Gilbert said. “The biggest difference between our team this year and last year is that our team chemistry is much better. These girls have really meshed, and that has showed on the court.”
Akron (25-2) is leading the Pool I standings, followed by Simla (22-6) and Sangre de Cristo (24-3), which are both 1-1. Simla and Sangre meet today in a pool-play match, with the winner getting the No. 2 seed in Pool II.
“It feels great for us to get this win over Mancos,” Sangre coach Keeli Ford said about her team’s five-game victory. “My girls stepped up big time and we have to hit strong and have big blocks (today).”
Defending state champ Fowler (27-1) has a 2-0 record in Pool II. Resurrection Christian also had a chance to go 2-0 in Pool II as it played Dolores in a late match.
Akron finishes pool play against Mancos today. The top two teams in each pool will play cross-bracket semifinal matches today. The championship is scheduled for 7 p.m.
“It’s very gratifying to see the way my girls played (Friday),” Gilbert said. “It’s great to see all the hard work these girls have put in pay dividends.”
The Rams are no stranger to state tournament volleyball success. Akron won the 1989 1A and 1991 2A state titles.
“We just need to approach our matches (today) like we have all season,” Gilbert said. “The key for us is just to stay mentally focused.”
Fowler, which has won state crowns in 1981, 1983, 1988, 1992-93, 1995, 1997-99, 2005 and 2008, had to battle to stay unbeaten in pool play. In the Grizzlies’ opening match, they had to shake off pesky Dolores and Burlington in five games each.
“There are just some awesome volleyball teams here,” Fowler coach Sandy Moss said. “I’m glad that we’re 2-0 right now.”
