Storm tame Bulldogs, Tigers to open season

CLEVELAND 3, ABQ. HIGH 0

ALBUQUERQUE (Aug. 27, 2024) — The Cleveland High School Storm volleyball team opened its season with a road win against a gutsy Albuquerque High Bulldogs squad in a 3-0 sweep (28-26, 25-11, 25-17).

The Storm got off to a slow start in the first set, trading points back and forth with the Bulldogs.

AHS, while smaller in stature, were all arms and hands, making one incredible save after another and frustrating a CHS team boasting three Division I college commits with another being courted.

“I think we had a little bit of nerves in the first set. We didn’t get any offensive rhythm,” said head coach Charity Gomez. “But we are really tough from the service line, so once we got [AHS] out of sorts ... we got in our rhythm.”

Toward the end of the first set, with the score at 25-25 (a two-point lead is required to when the set), CHS started to click thanks to a precision setup from future Sacramento State star and current CHS middle blocker (MB), Kelsey Hefner, followed by a well-timed tactics change from outside hitter (OH) and Arizona State commit Ceci Vance turned everything around.

Vance pounded the Bulldogs from the net through most of Set 1, but AHS proved difficult to power past.

So, with the Bulldogs lining up several feet from the net, Vance jumped up to place one of her patented power strikes but instead lightly feathered the ball over the net, replacing strength with finesse.

After that, Storm stars, opposite hitter Emma Wild (who hasn’t decided which of her several DI offers she is going to take) and OH Azlynn Tittmann quickly found their timing. Wild’s laser serves began to find their marks, and Tittmann’s blocking at the net became nearly impassable.

AHS didn’t get any reprieve when the Storm began rotating, either. Junior MB Aaliyah Simpson came in and easily matched her teammates for size and skill, continuing the CHS domination at the net.

The Bulldogs began to get rattled by the end of Set 1, and a sloppy dropped ball was the final point that handed a 28-26 win to the Storm.

Albuquerque High came out for the next two games and gave a huge effort, but once CHS found their footing, it just proved too much for the Bulldogs.

“We are always trying to serve tough enough that we get really easy balls back and then we can get into some offensive rhythm,” said Gomez. “Once that happens, there is really no one who can match up with us, attacker-for-attacker, because we just have a lot going on, and we are really hard to handle.”

Other than a desperate final surge from AHS in Set 3, the Storm rolled through the next two sets, winning in blowout fashion, 25-11 and 25-16.

“It was first-match jitters,” Gomez said. “We haven’t played in a while, but we are still just trying to get a little better every day.”

Next up, the Cleveland Storm have their home opener at 6 p.m. Aug. 29 against an undefeated Los Lunas team (2-0). The Tigers are yet to lose a single game (3-0 versus Roswell Aug. 24, and 3-0 versus Gadsden Aug. 27.)

CLEVELAND 3, LOS LUNAS 0

RIO RANCHO - The Storm (2-0) volleyball home-opener was a clean sweep as they defeated the visiting Los Lunas Tigers (2-1) in straight sets, 3-0 (25-12, 25-12, 25-16).

Senior hitters Ceci Vance and Kelsey Heffner combined for 29 kills on the night (15 and 14 respectively), to go alongside 8 aces (5 and 3), and 28 saves (10 and 18).