Defending champs advance

RIO RANCHO – Texico and Melrose are poised to possibly repeat state championships in volleyball.

The Lady Wolverines (22-3), seeded No. 2 in Class 2A, and the Lady Buffs, No. 4 in Class 1A, advanced to Saturday's single-elimination semifinals in their respective classes with victories on Friday afternoon.

Texico posted a 25-20, 25-16, 25-22 sweep of third-seeded Mesilla Valley (21-4) at Rio Rancho H.S., and was slated to face face fifth-seeded Laguna-Acoma (21-4) on Saturday morning at Rio Rancho Event Center. The other semifinal pitted Albuquerque-based and top-seeded Legacy Academy (21-2) against Mesilla Valley, with winners advancing to Saturday afternoon's championship match.

In 1A, Melrose (19-6) downed longtime rival and top-seeded Logan (20-5), edging the Lady Longhorns 19-25, 19-25, 25-16, 25-15, 15-10 at Bernalillo H.S. The Lady Buffs played third-seeded Quemado (22-4) on Saturday morning, with the winner advancing to the finals late Saturday afternoon at RREC against either Logan or second-seeded Gateway Christian (22-3).

Texico had to fight off the SonBlazers a bit in Games 1 and 3, but led most of the way.

"We knew they were good," Lady Wolverines coach Gabe Jones said. "They had a couple of really good, athletic players. We just had to limit everybody else and make it as hard on those two as we could."

Junior Kinzee Crow had eight kills, six of Texico's 15 aces and 13 assists in the victory, while senior Aspyn Furrow added four aces and also posted a double-double with 13 assists and 10 digs. Senior Abby Haakma collected a team-leading 16 digs, senior Adalyn Autrey had nine kills and junior Kailie Wieland chipped in three aces and 12 assists.

Meantime, the Lady Buffs had to overcome a 2-0 deficit for the second day in a row after slipping past District 4-1A rival Elida that way on Thursday.

"We executed a lot better in those last three sets," Melrose coach Casey Jackson said of Friday's win. "We didn't play badly in the first two sets. We just didn't execute as well.''

Melrose trailed 7-4 in Game 5 before rallying back against its longtime District 6-1A rival. The Lady Buffs moved to a different district this year and did not face Logan until Friday's tilt.

Senior Kambree Draper had 15 kills, 15 digs and four blocks against the Lady Longhorns, while senior Chantzee Elliott notched 14 kills and eighth-grader Braylan Morgan added 12 kills and 15 digs. Junior Hally Draper had nine kills and 10 digs, sophomore Kailey Jackson notched 13 digs and 42 assists and senior Eden Lunsford collected 15 digs.

After splitting two matches on Thursday, fifth-seeded Elida (20-8) stayed alive on Friday with wins over 10th-seeded Springer 26-24, 25-15, 25-14 and No. 10 New Mexico School for the Deaf 25-15, 25-20, 25-14 before losing to Quemado 9-25, 25-11, 25-22, 25-23.

Eighth-seeded Grady was eliminated on Friday with a five-set, 25-23, 25-27, 19-25, 25-19, 15-8 defeat at the hands of No. 7-seeded District 6-1A rival Fort Sumner.

Thursday – After a first-round bye in 2A, Texico dispatched No. 10 Cloudcroft 25-18, 25-8, 25-16 to move into Friday's winners bracket semifinals.

Jones said he thought his squad had things under control most of the way.

"I was never really worried, but it's always good to get that first (match) out of the way," he said. "It took us a little while to adjust. We were on our heels a little bit (early on)."

Junior Kinzee Crow had a big match for Texico with 16 kills, 20 digs and seven aces, while junior Aspyn Furrow delivered nine kills, 12 digs, three digs, three aces and 20 assists.

Melrose advanced to the 1A winners bracket semifinal with a come-from-behind 16-25, 23-25, 25-20, 25-19, 15-10 win over Elida after the Lady Tigers won their first-round match from 12th-seeded Hondo 25-13, 25-11, 25-7.

Elida led the Lady Buffs midway through the fifth set, but Hally Draper had five kills in the set, including three in a row to help Melrose take charge late.

"It was a tough loss, but we know we're getting close," Lady Tigers coach Darrell Chenault said. "We played well at times. They kind of got the momentum (in Game 3) and we just couldn't get it back."

It was the third time the District 6-1A rivals have played this season, and Melrose – seeking its 11th consecutive trip to the finals and sixth state title in that time – has won all three. Two of the three meetings, though, have gone to five sets.

Four Melrose players posted double-doubles – Morgan (14 kills, 14 digs), Kambree Draper (14 kills, 13 digs), Elliott (13 kills, 12 digs) and Hally Draper (12 kills, 24 digs). Also, Kambree Draper added two blocks and three aces, Jackson collected seven digs, three aces and 49 assists and Lunsford delivered 21 digs.

"It was a little tight," coach Jackson said. "It was a good battle, and a good response by our kids. I was proud of them."

In another first-round match on Thursday, Grady absorbed a 25-23, 25-19, 16-25, 25-20 loss at the hands of ninth-seeded Pine Hill.