The Manitou Springs volleyball team will see perhaps the toughest test of the season with regionals quickly approaching. The Mustangs will host University on Thursday, Oct. 27, with regular-season play across the state set to conclude over the weekend.
That means every team, not just the Mustangs (13-9 overall, 7-5 Tri-Peaks), must figure a path through regionals to earn a berth in the state volleyball tournament, which moves back to the Denver Coliseum this year.
“We’re expecting them to be good, but we’re hoping it’ll be a good competition,” Grace Allen said. “It’s good timing and good preparation for regionals.”
The University Bulldogs sit at No. 6 in the CHSAA Selection and Seeding Index, while the Mustangs are No. 16. That puts Manitou into the regional field for the second straight year.
Last season, Manitou swept Strasburg in regionals before falling to Alamosa in five sets, keeping the Mustangs just outside of the state tournament field.
This is a team that has battled some very tough teams and has looked like a team that can advance to the state tournament.
Thursday’s match against University should be a solid test the Mustangs can use to tidy up any fixable mistakes before regionals.
“We’re on the same page to the fact that we’re peaking right now, which is where we want to be,” coach Crissy Leonhardt said. “Hopefully, it shows.”
Manitou is riding a three-match winning streak after beating Florence, Colorado Springs Christian School and Atlas Prep. In the sweep over CSCS, Allen led the hitters with 11 kills and Teryn Thime totaled four blocks.
The Mustangs have shown plenty of encouraging play over the past week, and Thursday’s showdown should provide them with a crucial measurement of their talent compared to the top teams in the state.
“With a week of preparation where we can just focus on us, we’ll be able to dive in and watch film,” Leonhardt said. “It just always seems harder in the season to do those things, so it’ll be nicer and give the girls some knowledge individually to grow and improve.”