For the first time in a handful of seasons, the Rangeview girls volleyball team finished off the regular season knowing that it had more volleyball ahead of it.
Since 2019, the Raiders’ season has ended on its home floor with its Rangeview Raiders Classic tournament, but this year, it served as postseason preparation.
Coach Desarae Powell’s Rangeview team finished 3-1 in the tournament — which finished off a 14-9 regular season — in a precursor for its appearance in the Class 5A regional postseason. The Raiders were seeded No. 32 in the 36-team field, which it had fallen short of making since 2019.
“Going into our tournament in the past, we’ve already been counted out, so it was more of a fun way to finish out the year,” Powell said. “This time, we had something to prove and I feel like we did that. …I’m super proud of the girls. They’ve reached their goal with a lot of blood, sweat and tears, which are real things in volleyball.”
With the exception of the COVID-19 shortened 2020 season — the first under Powell, who took over for Doug Walker — Rangeview has finished with double-digit victories, but haven’t made the postseason. Even 15 wins last season didn’t get the Raiders into regionals last season, but 14 wins with an increased strength in schedule did the trick.
Rangeview’s last two opponents at the Raider Classic — Castle View and Pueblo West — both were postseason teams and it played a whopping 11 matches against teams that made it into the regional field.
The task will be massive, as the Raiders ended up in the Region 5 field hosted by Fossil Ridge High School, which includes the fifth-seeded and host SaberCats (19-4) along with No. 20 Rampart (14-9). Fossil Ridge sports an 18-0 record against Colorado teams (8-0 against regional qualifiers) as it suffered its only losses to powerhouses Arizona teams in an out-of-state tournament, while Rampart has played six matches vs. regional qualifiers.
“The games we’ve had fewer errors than the other team, we win,” Powell said. “A big focus going into this is to minimize unforced errors, play our game and see what happens.”
But no matter what happens when Rangeview plays Fossil Ridge (Saturday at 11 a.m. with the tournament shifted back a day due to weather) and turns around to play Rampart in the next match, Powell has relished the season.
Led by captains Maddie Kilmer and Anika Davison (aka the “glue” in Powell’s estimation), a handful of seniors have been transformational for the program. Kilmer ranked in the top 10 in five statistical categories in the City League this season, including the No. 2 spot in kills and No. 4 position in assist, while Davison ranked No. 5 in both kills and digs.
Dependable libero Briana Garcia (third in the City League in digs), developing outside hitter Shylin Collins (ninth in the league in kills) and new addition Birikt Betew (who came to the program after moving from Las Vegas and ranks sixth in the league in blocks) have been a senior core that has made Rangeview competitive in every match and is a group that has helped elevate the play of younger players on the roster as well.
“We’re so excited and thrilled to be able to play some of the top teams in the state,” Powell said. “Fossil Ridge is probably one of the big contenders to win the state championship, so the fact that we get to stand on the same court and see what we’ve got against them shows the growth of our program. The young kids coming up will see this and want to do it again.”
Rangeview is joined by 11th-seeded Cherokee Trail, No. 17 Regis Jesuit and No. 25 Grandview in the 5A girls volleyball postseason. The winner of each of 12 three-team regionals moves on to the 5A state tournament Nov. 14-16 at the Denver Coliseum.
Courtney Oakes is Aurora Sentinel Sports Editor. Reach him at sports@aurorasentinel.com. Twitter/X: @aurorasports. IG: Sentinel Prep Sports
2024 CLASS 5A REGION 5 GIRLS VOLLEYBALL TOURNAMENT
Nov. 8 at Fossil Ridge H.S., Fort Collins
Teams: No. 5 Fossil Ridge (19-4), No. 20 Rampart (14-9), NO. 32 RANGEVIEW (14-9)
Schedule: NO. 32 RANGEVIEW vs. No. 5 Fossil Ridge, 11 a.m.; NO. 32 RANGEVIEWvs. No. 20 Rampart, immed. following; No. 20 Rampart vs. No. 5 Fossil Ridge, immed. following
