De Beque hands Vail Christian girls volleyball its first league loss since 2022
The Dragons rallied from a 2-1 deficit to end the Saints' 23-game league winning streak
Ryan Sederquist/Vail Daily
De Beque came back from a 2-1 deficit at home on Tuesday to defeat Vail Christian in five sets, handing the Saints their first league loss since 2022.
“Ultimately they just outplayed us and we kind of panicked and didn’t play our game,” head coach Britney Branson said. “We made some silly mistakes and didn’t come together.”
The Saints dropped the first set 25-19 before coming back for a dominant 25-12 victory in the second. The Dragons jumped out to a 7-1 lead in the third but Vail Christian rallied for a 25-23 win.
“I loved how are kids turned it around and reacted after that first set,” Branson said of her team, which went up 20-14 in the fourth and looked prime to close things out.
Ava Vines, the younger sister of high jump state record holder Scottie Vines Jr. — and a state high jump champion in her own right — aced the next serve, however, to start the Dragons’ rally. The Saints hit the next volley into the net and committed a pair of errors before Branson was forced to call timeout. But the break in the action wasn’t enough to stymie the Dragons’ comeback. De Beque completed the 10-2 run to force a fifth, where they came away with a 15-11 victory.
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Coming off the Plateau Valley game last Friday, De Beque presented a unique puzzle to solve with one day of practice, Branson said. The small squad has three marquee players in Vines, Avery Rigsby and Ally Sandidge and isn’t afraid to hide the other three on the court, often employing a solo block rotation.
“They understand how to hide their weaknesses and really prioritize their key kids. It’s really different than what you’re used to,” Branson said. “I think it was so unique that our kids kind of panicked.”
Mary McClarrinon had 16 kills for the Saints and Betty Bartok added 11 with a team-leading .296 hitting percentage. Bartok is a right-side setter on the roster, but Branson said the junior is her team’s Swiss Army knife.
“She can play literally everything — she’s so valuable and has such a huge role,” Branson continued. “She understands when something is working or something is not that I can just put her in that position. She’s also such a leader on the court — super competitive and high energy and really wants to win. You can rely on her, you can hold her accountable. She’s just a good competitor and athlete.”
Jessie Allen led the team with 22 digs. Tenley Brasington tallied eight of the team’s 15 aces and had a team-high 19 assists as well.
“I pride ourselves on our serving,” Branson said. “I think we do a good job being aggressive from the service line, getting teams out of system.”
The loss ended the Saints’ 23-game league winning streak, but Branson said that wasn’t something the team talked about much before or after.
“We already have a target on our back, going undefeated, winning league last year,” the coach said. “I think we’re now focused on how we recover and come back for Friday. I know we’re now itching to come back on and compete.”
Vail Christian (7-3) hosts Rangely (10-2) on Friday night. Branson said the team was in a better place coming off Tuesday’s loss after Wednesday’s practice and film session. The group learned the importance of communication, especially on a short week, she added.
“We feel good with where we are and felt like we are learning from it and there’s definitely things we can take from it,” Branson said. “And then we pretty much wiped our hands and said, ‘OK, we have to move on and prepare for Rangely.”
