By Rebecca Daly
Staff Writer
Corona del Sol has its sights set high on the championship after advancing to the semifinals with Tuesday night’s sweep over Millennium.
The No. 3 seeded Corona del Sol Aztecs got redemption on the No. 16 seed Millennium Tigers, led by Head Coach Julie Vastine, after the Tigers handed the Aztecs their second loss of the regular season just over two weeks ago. The Aztecs used that as motivation going into this matchup and made the changes necessary to win this time around.
“We knew that we needed to pass a lot better. We did not pass well then, and we did tonight.
So that was able to keep them on their heels a little bit more,” Corona del Sol Head Coach Ben Maxfield said.
With those adjustments, the Aztecs flew through the first two sets with a heavy lead. The first set ended 25-15. They won the second set 25-13. But don’t be fooled by the score. The Tigers played intensely through both sets, and brought the heat in the third set.
With the Aztecs up 2-0 in the match, the Tigers fought as hard as they could to stay in the game. The Tigers started strong by gaining a lead, and the Aztecs were able to catch up and match the score. With the Aztecs up 21-17, the Tigers fought their way back into the game. Millennium sophomore hitter Jayda Hunt made things difficult for the Aztecs defense with her kills, along with senior Gabbi Kucinski’s blocks and kills.
The Aztecs held the Tigers to a tie, going back and forth keeping both teams in. After a long down-to-the-wire third set, Corona del Sol junior middle blocker Hayden Conner got the match point to win the set 28-26, ending Millennium’s season.
“It's definitely the drive of wanting to win and knowing our best. We lost our previous game against them, so I feel like that really helped drive our momentum this game, and we wanted to make a statement,” Conner said.
Conner is a force to be reckoned with on the court. She is ranked 57th in the country with a 0.440 hitting percentage, 17th in the state for total blocks with 103, and 30th in the state for kills with 359. She is verbally committed to the University of Washington to continue playing volleyball.
Conner is a powerful player who radiates energy onto her teammates during games. According to coach Maxfield, Conner’s skills have elevated the play of her teammates, which takes the pressure off her and makes the team better, overall.
“We just have that mentality of always relying on each other and rely on yourself at the same time, and learn from your mistakes. Even if you have one bad play, just bring yourself back up and don't let mistakes define you,” Conner said.
Corona del Sol will compete at home against No. 7 Hamilton in the semifinals on Thursday. Hamilton advanced after an upset at No. 2 Sandra Day O’Connor. The Aztecs, however, are ready for any opponent.
“We're not worried about losing. That's the big thing. We play to win,” Maxfield said.
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