Monticello volleyball moves into 1A top ten

by Rhett Sifford
Sports Editor
Since opening their season 2-6 the Monticello High School volleyball team hasn’t accomplished very much.They’ve only won seven of their last nine matches and six of their last seven including an impressive victory over San Juan on September 13.
Their solid performance over the past month includes straight-set wins over Green River, Pinnacle, Monument Valley, Whitehorse, and Montezuma-Cortez.
In that time, the Buckaroos advanced into the top ten of the Utah 1A RPI standings, where they currently sit in eighth with an 8-8 record.
Their most recent win, a sweep of Montezuma-Cortez, is not yet reported as of the press deadline, so their record should actually be 9-8. They are 5-0 in Region 23 play.
In the matches since the San Juan Record last reported on MHS, the girls beat Monument Valley on the road in straight sets 25-11, 25-18, and 25-16 on September 20.
They took down Whitehorse at home the following night 25-17, 25-13, and 25-23. Though the Bucks didn’t play their best volleyball at Green River on September 27, they still got the Pirates in four sets 15-25, 25-14, 25-16, and 25-17.
Their only loss since September 7 came against Grand County this past Thursday, September 29 in the MHS gym. The Red Devils bested their rivals in straight sets, but Monticello kept it close 19-25, 31-33, and 20-25.
Then the Buckaroos bounced back to dominate Montezuma-Cortez the following night in Cortez in a straight-sets win.
Monticello has their hands full this week as they look to give rival Dove Creek their first loss of the season. The Bulldogs are an impressive 15-0, ranked second in the Colorado 1A RPI.
That’s pretty silly since Dove Creek is the only team in the state with 15 wins. 11-1 Haxtun is #1. Monticello entered the unfriendly confines of the DCHS gym on Tuesday, October 4 for the showdown against their rivals.
Sadly the result won’t be available until after our press deadline, so we’ll have to report on it in a future issue of the Record.
Following the match with Dove Creek, the Buckaroos will host the Pinnacle Panthers this Friday, October 7.
They’re set to close out the regular season at Whitehorse on October 11 and at home against Monument Valley on October 18.