Eagles finally healthy, now No. 2 in power rankings

By Brian Wright
Sports Editor
Published on Sunday, October 25, 2009 9:44 AM MST

Now that a flu-like illness has run its course with several Thatcher volleyball players, the Eagles can get back to the business at hand.

Thatcher is 100 percent healthy and posted 3-0 wins over Benson and Pima on Tuesday and Thursday, respectively.

Eagles coach Krista Brown said her team can still improve. Blocking left-handed hitters and getting kills on the third hit of a rally were two things she mentioned specifically.

Shenae Matthews of Pima, right, tries to hit the ball past the block of Thatcher’s Rebeka Barney on Thursday at Thatcher High School. Thatcher won the match 3-0 and improved to 15-0. Photo by Brian Wright

A little extra pep in the step carried Thatcher to a 25-12, 25-18, 25-14 win over Pima in Thatcher.

Junior Rachel Orr had another superb performance for the Eagles with 13 kills and a hitting percentage of 50.

She currently leads all players in the state in hitting percentage at 39.2.

Heather Lucero had 10 kills and 12 service points; Lacy Jo Householder had 13 digs, and Rebeka Barney dished 32 assists.

Pima faced an incredibly tough schedule during the week by playing at Safford (Tuesday) and at Thatcher.

Playing two of the best teams in the state in the same week is a challenge for any team.

The Roughriders lost both matches 3-0, but that doesn’t tell the whole story. Pima had moments in each match where it competed on the same level with the Eagles and Bulldogs.

Delaney Norton has become a hitting force for the ‘Riders and was impressive with her left-handed blasts in both matches.

Thatcher (15-0) moved to No. 2 in the state power rankings behind only Chandler Valley Christian (14-0).

Pima (11-4) holds the No. 8 spot in between Phoenix Bourgade Catholic (10-5) at No. 7 and Tucson Pusch Ridge (12-4) at No. 9.

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Comments

3 comment(s)

To Volleyball wrote on Oct 27, 2009 10:12 AM:

" My complaint is not against the Safford and Thatcher volleyball teams. I would agree that they both have really good teams The issue is Morenci is ahead of Pima in power rankings and they did not even get mentioned in the article. The EA Courier sells the paper in the Greenlee County area so it would not hurt them to mention the teams in this area. "

Volleyball wrote on Oct 26, 2009 8:30 PM:

" Morenci does have a pretty good volleyball team this year. Sorry but Thatcher is the stnadout around here.. The paper is going to print what most of the public want to see. And that's Thatcher and Safford. Might as well quit complaining.. "

Volleyball Fan wrote on Oct 25, 2009 8:17 PM:

" How come the EA Courier could not mention that Morenci is number 6 in power rankings. Also, don't forget Morenci did beat Thatcher once at the Thatcher tournament and has also given them games everytime they play them. "

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