Rudy's Country Store & 
State Volleyball Championships
By: Josh Grine of NMPreps.com
The 2015 Rudy's "Country Store & State Volleyball Championships take place this week and today we provide you with the ultimate state tournament preview.
An exciting season is coming to a close this week as 6-state champions will be crowned on November 14th. This season (an NMPreps.com first) was another exciting one for the state of New Mexico's top volleyball teams. Everything that teams have worked for will be settled on on Saturday. We look at the only undefeated left in Big School Division volleyball, another in 6A that has yet to lose to an NM team and a crowded 5A class that has headline all over it.
6A
POOL PLAY - November 12th (Santa Ana Star Center)
Pool A - 10:30AM - Court #1
#1 La Cueva (19-0, 8-0)
#8 Eldorado (12-8, 5-3)
#12 Clovis (7-16, 2-5)
Grine's Take: This pool features two District 2-6A rivals in La Cueva and Eldorado. Both teams seeded as expected for the most part. The surprise in the pool and state tournament is the Clovis Lady Wildcats...Continue Reading Here
Key Players in this Pool
Abigail Stomp (La Cueva HS/Senior) 553 assists, 164 digs, 120 blocks on the season.
Annabelle Kubinski (La Cueva HS/Sophomore) 154 kills, 162 total blocks on the season.
Brigitte Lowe (Eldorado HS/Senior) 281 Kills on the season.
Hannah Warren (Eldorado HS/Senior) 283 Digs on the season.
Jaren Piepkorn (Clovis/Senior) 150 kills, 27 Aces on the season.
Lexi Cole (Clovis Sophomore) 149 Kills, 46 total blocks on the season.
Grine's Take: La Cueva features two D-1 players in Stomp and Anna Detry (Junior) who will likely be the favorites to watch and win it all. Clovis has the sophomore sensation in Lexi .. Continue Reading Here
Pool B - 10:30AM - Court #2
#2 Onate (16-5, 8-0)
#7 Sandia (13-8, 5-3)
#11 Hobbs (10-11, 6-0)
Grine's Take: The number two team in the Onate Knights have yet to lose a match to a New Mexico based school. The Lady Knights featured as one of our teams of the week .. Continue Reading Here
Key Players in this Pool
Alexis Benda (Onate/Junior): 253 kills on the season.
Keyarha Wilson (Onate/Senior): 225 kills on the season.
Jaedyn Fuqua (Sandia/Sophomore): 210 kills on the season.
Linnea Romero (Sandia/Junior): 271 digs on the season.
Addison Lewis (Hobbs/Junior): 265 digs on the season.
Amanda Rotunno (Hobbs/Junior) 308 assists on the season.
Grine's Take: Sandia has most of the known names for the state of New Mexico in Romero, Abbey Willison and Raelynn Edge but Fuqua a sophomore is new to the scene. Onate has top-50 players Benda and ..Continue Reading Here
Pool 3 - 10:30AM - Court #3
#3 Cibola (16-5, 6-2)
#6 Cleveland (10-9, 6-2)
#10 Albuquerque (11-7, 8-0)
Grine's Take: Pool 3 is basically the pool of District champions as Cibola and Cleveland tied for the regular season title in district 1-6A (minus the tie breaker, etc) and .. Continue Reading Here
Key Players in this Pool
Hannah Thompson (Cibola/Junior): Notre Dame commit.
Destyni Brooks (Cibola/Junior)
Ariel Geruntho (Cleveland/Senior): 55 kills (listed games).
Kenley Vote (Cleveland/Sophomore): 168 assists (listed games).
Ebony Bates (Albuquerque HS/Senior)
Marisa Rivas (Albuquerque HS/Senior)
Grine's Take: Hannah Thompson the highlight name in the bunch after committing to Notre Dame is one of the top players in the entire state. Geruntho of Cleveland is one of the best seniors in the state and one of the .. Continue Reading Here
Pool D - 10:30AM - Court #4
#4 Volcano Vista (13-7, 6-2)
#5 Mayfield (14-8, 4-4)
#9 La Cruces (11-11, 4-4)
Grine's Take: Volcano Vista has one of the best players in the state in Lyric Ellison and she will look to take her squad to a new level. Mayfield, to some surprise, is the fifth seed of the likes of .. Continue Reading Here
Key Players in this Pool
Lyric Ellison (Volcano Vista/Senior): 265 kills on the season.
Jordan Breding (Volcano Vista/Senior): 290 digs on the season.
Rylee Thurman (Mayfield/Junior): 124 kills on the season.
Kelsey Shelton (Mayfield/Senior): 342 assists on the season.
Celeste Cox (Las Cruces/Junior):
Alyssa Barrera (Las Cruces/Sophomore):
Grine's Take: Ellison of Volcano Vista High School is a favorite to take home the NMPreps.com Miss Volleyball award after a stellar season is surely one that you want to watch in this pool. Breding is another off this Lady Hawks team who is top at her position and overall in the state. Thurman and Shelton of ..Continue Reading Here
Grine's Prediction
2015 State Champ: Volcano Vista
2015 Runner-Up: La Cueva
Why: Last season, most thought it was going home to a top notch team in Sandia. Well, I don't know what it is about the Lady Hawks that I say could play the upset .. Continue Reading Here
Pool A Winner- La Cueva 2-0 (Eldorado 1-1, Clovis 0-2)
Pool B Winner - Sandia 2-0 (Onate 1-1, Hobbs 0-2)
Pool C Winner - Cleveland 2-0 (Cibola 1-1, Albuquerque High 0-2)
Pool D Winner - Volcano Vista 2-0 (Las Cruces 1-1, Mayfield 0-2)
5A
Pool A - 8AM - Court #1
#1 St. Pius (19-2, 8-0)
#8 Albuquerque Academy (14-8, 4-4)
#12 Espanola Valley (13-9, 5-3)
Grine: Without much surprise the Lady Sartans are the No. 1 seed in the 5A bracket after posting a 19-2 season. The Lady Sartans have three players in the Top-50 Player Rankings in Kayla Griego (2017), Emily Buford (2016) and Julianna Zamora (2017). Griego, this week was on the finalist announcement for Top Setter in the State of New Mexico as a junior. Albuquerque Academy could be viewed as under performing this season after some hype .. Continue Reading Here
Key Players To Watch
Kayla Griego (St. Pius X/2017/S)
Emily Buford (St. Pius X/2016)
Julianna Zamora (St. Pius X/2017)
Alina Vanecek (Albuquerque Academy/2016)
Libby Fidel (Albuquerque Academy/2016)
Sarah Skillman (Albuquerque Academy/2018)
Celina Naranjo (Espanola Valley/2016)
Kaitlyn Romero (Espanola Valley/2016)
Chloe Fell (Espanola Valley/2019)
Pool-A Prediction
St. Pius X 2-0
Espanola Valley 1-1
Albuquerque Academy 0-2
Why?: Espanola Valley is trending up and Albuquerque Academy is, well, not. Oh and St. Pius X is just too talented.
Pool B - 8AM - Court #2
#2 Roswell (19-2, 6-0)
#7 Goddard (15-8, 4-3)
#11 Santa Teresa (15-7, 6-4)
Grine: The best, unknown, team in 5A is the Roswell Coyotes who grabbed the No. 2 seed in the tournament. (Unknown? Failed attempts to reach out to the program). We had a preseason watch on players Gali Sanchez (2016). One of the two losses for the Coyotes is to the top team in 5A, St. Pius X. The Goddard Lady Rockets come into the state tournament looking to be the upset team. The Lady Rockets feature Leah Weathers (2017) and .. Continue Reading Here
Key Players To Watch
Gali Sanchez (Roswell/2016)
Leah Weathers (Goddard/2017)
Shaylee Griffin (Goddard/2016)
Jacqueline Dacanay (Goddard/2016)
Madison Leyva (Santa Teresa/2017)
Jesselle Guzman (Santa Teresa/2016)
Adriana Garcia (Santa Teresa/2019)
Pool-B Prediction
Roswell 1-1
Goddard 1-1
Santa Teresa 1-1
Why?: It's hard to beat a team four times in a season so we predict Goddard upsets Roswell. Roswell re-groups and beats Santa Teresa, ST then tops Goddard after they win their game of the .. Continue Reading Here
Pool C - 8AM - Court #3
#3 Centennial (20-3, 9-2)
#6 Piedra Vista (17-4, 8-0)
#10 Artesia (13-8, 3-4)
Grine: Arguably one of the best players in the state will lead the defending 5A champions into the post season, Savannah Bush (2016) has been outstanding all season with 322 kills on the season. D'Andra Espinoza (2016) is another player you need to watch this week, she has 407 digs on the season. The Lady Panthers bring an .. Continue Reading Here
Key Players To Watch
Savannah Bush (Centennial/2016)
D'Andra Espinoza (Centennial/2016)
Abigail Matanis (Centennial/2016)
Hannah Robinson (Piedra Vista/2016)
Autumn Begay (Piedra Vista/2016)
Sam DeWees (Piedra Vista/2016)
Jenna Butcher (Artesia/2016)
Justena Galindo (Artesia/2016)
Kayla Ledezma (Artesia/2016)
Pool-C Prediction
Centennial 2-0
Piedra Vista 1-1
Artesia 0-2
Why?: I was hesitate to take Artesia on Piedra Vista but the Lady Panthers riding the win streak might be a little better.
Pool D - 8AM - Court #4
#4 Los Lunas (17-5, 10-1)
#5 Los Alamos (18-3, 8-0)
#9 Moriarty (16-6, 3-3)
Grine: 5A is loaded with some of the top prospects in the state and Los Lunas has a pair of them in Kelsey Bell (2016) and Jordan Holland (2016). Bell was announced yesterday as finalist for Top Setter of the year. Los Alamos is one of the best 5-seed teams in the state of New Mexico, in what could be considered the toughest pools in the state tournament. Los Alamos has an impressive 18-win season and they get 'rewarded' with a 5-seed.Samantha Melton .. Continue Reading Here
Key Players To Watch
Jordan Holland (Los Lunas/2016)
Kelsey Bell (Los Lunas/2016)
Hayley Torres (Los Lunas/2018)
Sierra Foley (Los Alamos/2016)
Samantha Melton (Los Alamos/2016)
Halie Street (Los Alamos/2016)
Alyssa Adams (Moriarty/2018)
Emily Gonzales (Moriarty/2017)
Samantha Gauna (Moriarty/2016)
Pool-D Prediction
Los Alamos 2-0
Los Lunas 1-1
Moriarty 0-2
Why?: Los Alamos enters with some anger (or they should) being a 5-seed after a terrific season. The order is tall to upset a top notch favorite like Los Lunas but Los Alamos has a message to sell. ..Continue Reading Here
STATE CHAMPION - St. Pius X
Runner Up - Los Lunas
Final Four - St. Pius X vs Los Alamos, Centennial vs Los Lunas.
4A
Pool A - 1PM - Court #1
#1 Sandia Prep
#8 Kirtland Central
#12 Shiprock
Pool B - 1PM - Court #2
#2 West Las Vegas
#7 Hope Christian
#11 Ruidoso
Pool C - 1PM - Court #3
#3 Wingate
#6 Portales
#10 Robertson
Pool D - 1PM - Court #4
#4 Silver
#5 St. Mikes
#9 Pojoaque Valley
State Volleyball ChampionshipsBy: Josh Grine of NMPreps.com
The 2015 Rudy's "Country Store &
State Volleyball Championships take place this week and today we provide you with the ultimate state tournament preview.An exciting season is coming to a close this week as 6-state champions will be crowned on November 14th. This season (an NMPreps.com first) was another exciting one for the state of New Mexico's top volleyball teams. Everything that teams have worked for will be settled on on Saturday. We look at the only undefeated left in Big School Division volleyball, another in 6A that has yet to lose to an NM team and a crowded 5A class that has headline all over it.
6A
POOL PLAY - November 12th (Santa Ana Star Center)
Pool A - 10:30AM - Court #1
#1 La Cueva (19-0, 8-0)
#8 Eldorado (12-8, 5-3)
#12 Clovis (7-16, 2-5)
Grine's Take: This pool features two District 2-6A rivals in La Cueva and Eldorado. Both teams seeded as expected for the most part. The surprise in the pool and state tournament is the Clovis Lady Wildcats...Continue Reading Here
Key Players in this Pool
Abigail Stomp (La Cueva HS/Senior) 553 assists, 164 digs, 120 blocks on the season.
Annabelle Kubinski (La Cueva HS/Sophomore) 154 kills, 162 total blocks on the season.
Brigitte Lowe (Eldorado HS/Senior) 281 Kills on the season.
Hannah Warren (Eldorado HS/Senior) 283 Digs on the season.
Jaren Piepkorn (Clovis/Senior) 150 kills, 27 Aces on the season.
Lexi Cole (Clovis Sophomore) 149 Kills, 46 total blocks on the season.
Grine's Take: La Cueva features two D-1 players in Stomp and Anna Detry (Junior) who will likely be the favorites to watch and win it all. Clovis has the sophomore sensation in Lexi .. Continue Reading Here
Pool B - 10:30AM - Court #2
#2 Onate (16-5, 8-0)
#7 Sandia (13-8, 5-3)
#11 Hobbs (10-11, 6-0)
Grine's Take: The number two team in the Onate Knights have yet to lose a match to a New Mexico based school. The Lady Knights featured as one of our teams of the week .. Continue Reading Here
Key Players in this Pool
Alexis Benda (Onate/Junior): 253 kills on the season.
Keyarha Wilson (Onate/Senior): 225 kills on the season.
Jaedyn Fuqua (Sandia/Sophomore): 210 kills on the season.
Linnea Romero (Sandia/Junior): 271 digs on the season.
Addison Lewis (Hobbs/Junior): 265 digs on the season.
Amanda Rotunno (Hobbs/Junior) 308 assists on the season.
Grine's Take: Sandia has most of the known names for the state of New Mexico in Romero, Abbey Willison and Raelynn Edge but Fuqua a sophomore is new to the scene. Onate has top-50 players Benda and ..Continue Reading Here
Pool 3 - 10:30AM - Court #3
#3 Cibola (16-5, 6-2)
#6 Cleveland (10-9, 6-2)
#10 Albuquerque (11-7, 8-0)
Grine's Take: Pool 3 is basically the pool of District champions as Cibola and Cleveland tied for the regular season title in district 1-6A (minus the tie breaker, etc) and .. Continue Reading Here
Key Players in this Pool
Hannah Thompson (Cibola/Junior): Notre Dame commit.
Destyni Brooks (Cibola/Junior)
Ariel Geruntho (Cleveland/Senior): 55 kills (listed games).
Kenley Vote (Cleveland/Sophomore): 168 assists (listed games).
Ebony Bates (Albuquerque HS/Senior)
Marisa Rivas (Albuquerque HS/Senior)
Grine's Take: Hannah Thompson the highlight name in the bunch after committing to Notre Dame is one of the top players in the entire state. Geruntho of Cleveland is one of the best seniors in the state and one of the .. Continue Reading Here
Pool D - 10:30AM - Court #4
#4 Volcano Vista (13-7, 6-2)
#5 Mayfield (14-8, 4-4)
#9 La Cruces (11-11, 4-4)
Grine's Take: Volcano Vista has one of the best players in the state in Lyric Ellison and she will look to take her squad to a new level. Mayfield, to some surprise, is the fifth seed of the likes of .. Continue Reading Here
Key Players in this Pool
Lyric Ellison (Volcano Vista/Senior): 265 kills on the season.
Jordan Breding (Volcano Vista/Senior): 290 digs on the season.
Rylee Thurman (Mayfield/Junior): 124 kills on the season.
Kelsey Shelton (Mayfield/Senior): 342 assists on the season.
Celeste Cox (Las Cruces/Junior):
Alyssa Barrera (Las Cruces/Sophomore):
Grine's Take: Ellison of Volcano Vista High School is a favorite to take home the NMPreps.com Miss Volleyball award after a stellar season is surely one that you want to watch in this pool. Breding is another off this Lady Hawks team who is top at her position and overall in the state. Thurman and Shelton of ..Continue Reading Here
Grine's Prediction
2015 State Champ: Volcano Vista
2015 Runner-Up: La Cueva
Why: Last season, most thought it was going home to a top notch team in Sandia. Well, I don't know what it is about the Lady Hawks that I say could play the upset .. Continue Reading Here
Pool A Winner- La Cueva 2-0 (Eldorado 1-1, Clovis 0-2)
Pool B Winner - Sandia 2-0 (Onate 1-1, Hobbs 0-2)
Pool C Winner - Cleveland 2-0 (Cibola 1-1, Albuquerque High 0-2)
Pool D Winner - Volcano Vista 2-0 (Las Cruces 1-1, Mayfield 0-2)
5A
Pool A - 8AM - Court #1
#1 St. Pius (19-2, 8-0)
#8 Albuquerque Academy (14-8, 4-4)
#12 Espanola Valley (13-9, 5-3)
Grine: Without much surprise the Lady Sartans are the No. 1 seed in the 5A bracket after posting a 19-2 season. The Lady Sartans have three players in the Top-50 Player Rankings in Kayla Griego (2017), Emily Buford (2016) and Julianna Zamora (2017). Griego, this week was on the finalist announcement for Top Setter in the State of New Mexico as a junior. Albuquerque Academy could be viewed as under performing this season after some hype .. Continue Reading Here
Key Players To Watch
Kayla Griego (St. Pius X/2017/S)
Emily Buford (St. Pius X/2016)
Julianna Zamora (St. Pius X/2017)
Alina Vanecek (Albuquerque Academy/2016)
Libby Fidel (Albuquerque Academy/2016)
Sarah Skillman (Albuquerque Academy/2018)
Celina Naranjo (Espanola Valley/2016)
Kaitlyn Romero (Espanola Valley/2016)
Chloe Fell (Espanola Valley/2019)
Pool-A Prediction
St. Pius X 2-0
Espanola Valley 1-1
Albuquerque Academy 0-2
Why?: Espanola Valley is trending up and Albuquerque Academy is, well, not. Oh and St. Pius X is just too talented.
Pool B - 8AM - Court #2
#2 Roswell (19-2, 6-0)
#7 Goddard (15-8, 4-3)
#11 Santa Teresa (15-7, 6-4)
Grine: The best, unknown, team in 5A is the Roswell Coyotes who grabbed the No. 2 seed in the tournament. (Unknown? Failed attempts to reach out to the program). We had a preseason watch on players Gali Sanchez (2016). One of the two losses for the Coyotes is to the top team in 5A, St. Pius X. The Goddard Lady Rockets come into the state tournament looking to be the upset team. The Lady Rockets feature Leah Weathers (2017) and .. Continue Reading Here
Key Players To Watch
Gali Sanchez (Roswell/2016)
Leah Weathers (Goddard/2017)
Shaylee Griffin (Goddard/2016)
Jacqueline Dacanay (Goddard/2016)
Madison Leyva (Santa Teresa/2017)
Jesselle Guzman (Santa Teresa/2016)
Adriana Garcia (Santa Teresa/2019)
Pool-B Prediction
Roswell 1-1
Goddard 1-1
Santa Teresa 1-1
Why?: It's hard to beat a team four times in a season so we predict Goddard upsets Roswell. Roswell re-groups and beats Santa Teresa, ST then tops Goddard after they win their game of the .. Continue Reading Here
Pool C - 8AM - Court #3
#3 Centennial (20-3, 9-2)
#6 Piedra Vista (17-4, 8-0)
#10 Artesia (13-8, 3-4)
Grine: Arguably one of the best players in the state will lead the defending 5A champions into the post season, Savannah Bush (2016) has been outstanding all season with 322 kills on the season. D'Andra Espinoza (2016) is another player you need to watch this week, she has 407 digs on the season. The Lady Panthers bring an .. Continue Reading Here
Key Players To Watch
Savannah Bush (Centennial/2016)
D'Andra Espinoza (Centennial/2016)
Abigail Matanis (Centennial/2016)
Hannah Robinson (Piedra Vista/2016)
Autumn Begay (Piedra Vista/2016)
Sam DeWees (Piedra Vista/2016)
Jenna Butcher (Artesia/2016)
Justena Galindo (Artesia/2016)
Kayla Ledezma (Artesia/2016)
Pool-C Prediction
Centennial 2-0
Piedra Vista 1-1
Artesia 0-2
Why?: I was hesitate to take Artesia on Piedra Vista but the Lady Panthers riding the win streak might be a little better.
Pool D - 8AM - Court #4
#4 Los Lunas (17-5, 10-1)
#5 Los Alamos (18-3, 8-0)
#9 Moriarty (16-6, 3-3)
Grine: 5A is loaded with some of the top prospects in the state and Los Lunas has a pair of them in Kelsey Bell (2016) and Jordan Holland (2016). Bell was announced yesterday as finalist for Top Setter of the year. Los Alamos is one of the best 5-seed teams in the state of New Mexico, in what could be considered the toughest pools in the state tournament. Los Alamos has an impressive 18-win season and they get 'rewarded' with a 5-seed.Samantha Melton .. Continue Reading Here
Key Players To Watch
Jordan Holland (Los Lunas/2016)
Kelsey Bell (Los Lunas/2016)
Hayley Torres (Los Lunas/2018)
Sierra Foley (Los Alamos/2016)
Samantha Melton (Los Alamos/2016)
Halie Street (Los Alamos/2016)
Alyssa Adams (Moriarty/2018)
Emily Gonzales (Moriarty/2017)
Samantha Gauna (Moriarty/2016)
Pool-D Prediction
Los Alamos 2-0
Los Lunas 1-1
Moriarty 0-2
Why?: Los Alamos enters with some anger (or they should) being a 5-seed after a terrific season. The order is tall to upset a top notch favorite like Los Lunas but Los Alamos has a message to sell. ..Continue Reading Here
STATE CHAMPION - St. Pius X
Runner Up - Los Lunas
Final Four - St. Pius X vs Los Alamos, Centennial vs Los Lunas.
4A
Pool A - 1PM - Court #1
#1 Sandia Prep
#8 Kirtland Central
#12 Shiprock
Pool B - 1PM - Court #2
#2 West Las Vegas
#7 Hope Christian
#11 Ruidoso
Pool C - 1PM - Court #3
#3 Wingate
#6 Portales
#10 Robertson
Pool D - 1PM - Court #4
#4 Silver
#5 St. Mikes
#9 Pojoaque Valley
