No title, but Indians satisfied with second

DENVER - The Cheyenne Mountain Indians took solace in knowing they had their best state finish in school history, even after falling short of their first state championship Saturday.

Mountain View won an emotional state 4A volleyball final 25-21, 25-21, 23-25, 25-14 at the Denver Coliseum.

“Until you play, you don’t understand how electric it is out there,” Cheyenne Mountain coach David Barkley said. “It took some adjusting on our part.”

Barkley said before the match that Mountain View had an edge in experience. It showed as the Mountain Lions jumped ahead two games to none.

No. 5 seed Mountain View earned its third state title in five years (2003, 2004, 2007).

Barkley said his outside hitters, including senior Jill Tooma, played well but were unable to find any rhythm during the final.

Mountain Lions outside hitters Lacey Turner and Kendra Roark got the better of the Indians blockers, especially in the first two games. After winning Game 3, 25-23, the Indians lost momentum in Game 4, falling behind 20-9.

“We took a game and didn’t embarrass ourselves,” Barkley said. “We played tough and they know it.”

The Indians entered the state tournament as the No. 2 seed, defeating Battle Mountain and Cherokee Trail on Friday. They advanced to the state final after sweeping Regis 25-18, 25-21, 25-15 and Longmont 25-22, 25-12, 25-23 earlier Saturday.

Senior setter Ali Risk was key to the Indians’ success, setting up Tooma and junior middle blocker Laura Brodie up front.

Brodie finished with 35 kills Saturday while Tooma added 22. Risk made 117 assists. Junior Holly Hutchison stepped up against Mountain View with team-highs in kills (16), blocks (5) and aces (2).

Mountain View (27-4) defeated Montrose and Berthoud on Friday night. It swept Regis (25-22, 27-25, 25-14) and Longmont (25-22, 25-16, 25-17) to advance and play the Indians in the final.

Last season, the Indians tied with Mountain View for third place after losing to eventual champ Battle Mountain in the semifinals.

After losing seven seniors, including three All-State players, Barkley said that this season was expected to be a rebuilding year.

“If you had told me last August that we would be playing in the state finals, I would have said ‘Wow,’” Barkley said. “Second in the state feels really good. We are bringing home a trophy.”

The Indians’ other losses this season were to 5A state qualifiers Pine Creek and Lewis-Palmer.

The Indians have some key pieces back for a run in 2008. Cheyenne Mountain loses seniors Risk, Tooma, Brooke Schierkolk, Sara Paige, Tyler Miller and Megan Luke to graduation. Key returners include setter Ellyn Barkley, sophomore outside hitter Kendall Gaffney, Hutchison and Brodie.

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