Heartbreaker: Rams lose tough season opener

RIO RANCHO — It was a packed house for the home opener as the Rio Rancho High School Rams volleyball team took a heartbreaking loss in straight sets to the St. Pius Sartans, 3-0.

RRHS may have lost all three sets (25-20, 25-23, 25-23), but the game was much closer than the final score indicates. The Rams fought to the end, even taking the lead late in the third set when junior middle blocker, Briland Kienle, blocked a powerful spike from Pius and put the score at 21-20. But it proved too little too late, and the Rams fell one final time, 25-23.

After the game, head coach Toby Manzanares said the loss was tough but understandable.

“I thought, consistency speaking, we were really ebb-and-flow all night long,” said Manzanares. “I just told our team, there’s going to be first-match jitters, nerves. They are playing in front of a lot of people who came to watch them.”

The RRHS gymnasium was filled with a home crowd. The cheer squad was in attendance, as was part of the girls soccer team. The student section was filled with fans dressed in white for the school wide "white out" (a common team spirit activity) and the crowd was loud.

Despite the hoopla, senior libero Reece Cave was a standout in the match. (*Note: “libero” is a specialized defensive player who concentrates on serve reception and digging but can’t block or hit. Typically, the libero is designated with a different color jersey.) At only 5 feet, 3 inches, Cave was able to consistently get under the Pius service and keep her team in the game with miraculous digs.

Manzanares also pointed out Jacey Mader as having a good night. “She attacks it hard,” Manzanares said of the junior outside hitter. “She attacks it with a heavy hand.”

Ultimately, RRHS had trouble finding their rhythm and seemed to gain the most advantage by keeping the ball in play, scoring after long, chaotic volleys back and forth.

“I think we can be a lot more consistent in the things we want to do. I just thought we attacked it a lot better in our practices than we did here,” said Manzanares. “For whatever reason, we just had a hard time connecting.”

Manzanares said his squad is resilient mentally and will pull through this loss if they stay focused on the tough task ahead.

"[This match] gives us an idea of what we need to continue to work on, but it’s one match. We have a brutal September ahead of us, but so does everyone else,” he said. “These guys will settle down. They’ll be just fine.”

The Rams look to rebound at 6:30 p.m. Sept. 3, when they head to Santa Fe High School.