DENVER – After rewriting program history this fall, Ignacio’s unforgettable 2023 volleyball season finally came to an end.
Pitted against Strasburg in a second-day eliminator this past Friday, the Bobcats lost in straight sets (25-16, 25-19, 27-25) before an attentive Denver Coliseum crowd.
Ignacio (21-8) made its second state tournament appearance in three seasons.
“I feel like nobody thought we were going to do this, or that we weren’t supposed to do this, and we did. So I’m really proud of everyone,” senior Kacey Brown said. “Obviously it’s a loss and not everyone’s going to be happy, but we’ve got to be proud of our school and show how proud we are … with a win or a loss.”
“I’m just so very humbled and grateful,” said senior Solymar Cosio. “For our coaches, and for the position that I’ve been put in to help lead this team to where we’ve gotten. I couldn’t have gotten anywhere without my team, period. Ignacio Volleyball has such a bright future. We have amazing freshmen now, and will-be seniors that are ready; they’ve stepped up in crucial moments, and I think they’ll be ready to take on bigger roles next year.”
After eliminating seventh-seed Swink in four sets, eighth-seeded Ignacio made the third set against No. 6 Strasburg quite a battle.
Ignacio built a 9-4 lead in the third set, pressing Strasburg coach Larry Deffenbaugh to call timeout.
The Bobcats later extended their lead to 14-10 following three straight Strasburg errors, but SHS later seized control with a 5-0 run and pulled ahead 19-16.
Two Strasburg miscues and an ace by Ignacio senior Darlyn Lechuga-Mendoza tied the set at 19-19.
Strasburg reached match point at 24-23, but Cosio let nothing come of senior libero Kenade Hickson’s serve by piercing Strasburg’s block with a tying kill. With the contest pushed into extra points, Strasburg again went ahead with a Damron kill, but Ignacio again answered with a Cosio spike.
“They’re all tough; Strasburg had really good energy,” Brown said. “We just wanted to find their holes (offensively), pick up everything (defensively), but they were really scrappy. It was fun playing them.”
The fun came to end, though, as Strasburg’s Natalie Damron glanced a kill off Brown’s block for a 26-25 lead, and Jenna Echer then clinched the match.
Focusing on a location somewhere between Ignacio’s front-row and back-row players, Echer’s offering curved toward the far sideline, drawing senior Maci Barnes’ interest.
Once appearing too fast and following too wide an arc to remain in bounds, it suddenly gave in to gravity, as did Barnes’ feet – gluing her helplessly to the court while the ball nicked just enough of the line to be ruled an ace.
“It was amazing; we put it all together,” said Ignacio’s Kelly Sirios. “Put confidence in our minds … but we couldn’t make it happen. But we’re going to keep getting better. We’re having new freshmen (in 2024) coming, and we’ll see what comes out. I’m super excited.”
