Once they got in the groove, the Demons cruised.
It just took a little time for the Durango High School volleyball team to find it in a 3-1 (21-25, 25-20, 25-16, 26-24) win over Montezuma-Cortez on Tuesday at DHS.
DHS (10-9, 6-4 Southwestern League) struggled with passing in the first set and gave the Panthers a 3-0 lead right off the service line.
“We were kind of dragging a little bit, and it took us a while to get into the groove of things,” said Elise Christiansen, daughter of Effie and Geln Christiansen. “I feel like a lot of us stepped up and pushed through.”
Four Demons had more than seven kills, giving setter Logan Clark options at the net; Clark dished out 30 assists in the match.
Christiansen had seven kills and five blocks, none more important than her final block to close the match out 26-24 in the fourth game.
“It was pretty awesome,” Christiansen said. “I feel like our intensity as a team was really good, that’s what drove us to keep pushing.”
DHS didn’t block well early but established itself at the net with 18 blocks in the match.
Laura Lieb led the team with 11 kills in the match, providing an outside option when the Panthers clogged the middle of the net to stop seniors Bella Bernazzani and Berkeley Davis.
The pair still picked up nine and six kills, respectively, but most of those happened later in the match once Cortez’s defense spread out to handle all of the Demons’ attacking options.
“As a team we all played really well, and as it happened I just got a lot of attempts,” said Lieb, daughter of Bobby and Meredith Lieb.
The Demons led 24-23 in the fourth set, but Cortez (8-12, 2-8 SWL) took a timeout and the next point to force a win-by-two scenario.
DHS went to Lieb for the first point, and Christiansen’s block sealed it.
“This win was big for us,” DHS head coach Colleen Keresey said. “I think we’re peaking.”
It couldn’t happen at a better time for the Demons, who will compete at the Cheyenne Mountain Tournament this weekend in Colorado Springs.
After that, they’ll await their potential postseason regional assignment.
“We’re not fighting for a regional,” Keresey said of the Demons’ final regular-season games in the Front Range. “We’re fighting for seeding.”
kgrabowski@durangoherald.com
