After winning volleyball regional, Indians' eyes on the prize

Cheyenne Mountain is ready to defend its Class 4A state championship. The Indians made that quite clear Saturday as they rolled over three opponents in their home gym.

The top seed cruised past No. 8 Broomfield in the day’s final match 25-18, 25-10, 25-17. With the win, Cheyenne Mountain improved to 26-0 and won the Region A title.

“We knew Broomfield was a great team, and we would need to bring our ‘A’ game,” coach David Barkley said. “We played with passion and just refused to let the ball touch the floor.”

After beating No. 16 Prairie View and No. 9 Rock Canyon in three games, the Indians put the finishing touches on a dominating regional performance, led by Natasha Ray and Megan Molner.

“This team has more chemistry than last year, and we know when to turn it on as a team and bring it,” Molner said. “This is so important because we set our goals high at the beginning of this season, and now the seniors on this team want a second state title.”

Molner and Ray set the tone, crashing the net and diving all over the floor to keep points alive.

Cheyenne Mountain played like a machine, with each part doing its job and making it difficult for the opponent to focus on one player.

“We have all put in a lot of hard work, but we also get along great off the court,” Ray said. “We have a lot of heart and a lot of balance on this team, and we also have very high expectations heading into state.”

Broomfield won its first two matches before losing to Cheyenne Mountain and will be joining the Indians at state.

“We haven’t seen a team that well-rounded all season, but it still feels good to be going to state,” Broomfield coach Monica Tuz said.

After having great success and winning a state championship last season, the Indians are experienced and hungry for another crown next weekend at Denver Coliseum.

“We are going to approach it exactly the same as we did last year, and push even harder this time to get another championship,” Ray said.