The Wolverines’ volleyball team was well on its way to clinching a share of the Intermountain League title on senior night, a title they had won each of the last nine years.
Up two games to none and 10-3 in the third, something happened to the young Bayfield team, and the No. 3 team in Colorado High School Activities Association Class 3A rankings woke up just in time.
The Mean Moose (19-2, 8-0 Intermountain League) rallied to win 14 of the next 15 points and completely flip the momentum of the match. Alamosa won the third set 27-25 and never gave the momentum back to the home team, winning games four and five to clinch the Intermountain League title outright.
“Bayfield played an incredible match (Tuesday night), and we weren’t ready for them at the beginning,” said Alamosa head coach Amber Ullery. “They came out on fire and we couldn’t handle the pressure. I just told the girls that we’ve come too far to let it slip away like this and we need to get it together quick.”
Get it together quick they did.
After the first two games, the Wolverines (10-9, 6-2 IML) had everything in their favor. The Bayfield crowd, as usual, was in a frenzy and Alamosa looked shell-shocked at what they were experiencing from the home crowd and an opposing team that was having its way. The Wolverines dominated the first set, winning 25-14 and went on to breeze through the second 25-17.
Down 10-3, Alamosa’s Micalyn Carpenter took the ball and served on 10 consecutive points. The Moose led 17-11 but Bayfield fought back. The game was tied at 22, then at 24 and the Wolverines just needed two points to sweep the IML’s top team and share the conference title.
When Alamosa converted on its third match point of game three, the air went out of the home crowd and the Wolverines, who came out on fire, started hanging their heads.
“We have been undefeated in league play and it was really tough to see them put two up on us,” said Alamosa junior Elise Tolley. “They have a phenomenal team and a great home crowd, but we play with heart and we play with passion and we knew we could do it.”
Alamosa took the momentum and ran.
The Mean Moose never trailed in the fourth game and won 25-18. When the match went to the tiebreak, the rowdy crowd was suddenly behind the Alamosa bench and all the noise was coming from a different direction than it had been earlier in the evening.
The Moose kept the heat on. They opened the fifth game with a 10-2 lead. Bayfield’s Brooke Kudelski tried to serve her way back into the match, getting as close as 12-8, but the comeback fell short, and Alamosa won 15-9.
“In the game of volleyball, it’s so mental,” said Kudelski, daughter of Bob and France Kudelski. “Sometimes when it’s just one set left to win, you start thinking about it and you start slacking and laying back, but it doesn’t work like that. You have to be strict about what you do and be obedient and never let up.”
Bayfield has a tournament this weekend at Palmer Ridge. After that, they’ll be a tough draw for anyone to play in postseason tournament.
“What happened in those first two games is what I see every day out of these girls,” said Bayfield head coach Terene Foutz. “I think we have more than we showed (Tuesday night) even at the beginning. We’ll be battle tested by the time we get to the regional, and there are advantages to these losses. We know we can play with anybody, and if you add a seething anger to this team, it’ll play into our hands in the future.”
jfries@durangoherald.com
