(Dan Mohrmann/CHSAANow.com)
COLORADO SPRINGS — Anything can happen in the midst of an intense rivalry game.
The No. 1-ranked Rampart Rams were forced to learn that lesson the hard way as they suffered their first league loss of the year, falling to rival, and No. 9, Pine Creek.
The Rams (16-3 overall, 5-1 5A Colorado Springs Metro League) were able to take the first set 25-13, but that was all the momentum he could muster as the Eagles (12-5, 6-0) rode the energy from the home crowd to sweep the remaining sets 25-23, 25-19, 26-24 to claim the Metro League title.
“I told my team to expect to play five (sets) because it was going to be a war,” Eagles coach Paul Waring said. “It was that way last year and it’s going to be that way forever as long as Pine Creek and Rampart are around.”
It appeared that the Rams were going to maintain the strong play they exhibited in the first set as they built a 12-7 lead early in set No. 2. But that’s when the Eagles went with a heavy dose of Alyssa Brinton who totaled five kills down the stretch to take that second set.
The rest of the match almost played out as a slugfest between Brinton and Rams hitter Janice Jin. Jin became the go-to hitter for the Rams to try and counter the offensive output from Brinton.
“(Brinton) is a good hitter and I think our blocking and defense had a hard time adjusting to her,” Rams coach Nikki Kinzer said. “We tried to work on it in practice but she had some shots that we haven’t seen yet, so kudos to her for figuring out how to take advantage of that against us.”
The ultimate downfall for the Rams came from a combination of unforced errors and struggling to get a side-out for long stretches. The Rams led the third set 10-7. but a 6-0 run for the Eagles gave them a quick three-point lead that they wouldn’t relinquish.
“We just kept our composure the whole match,” Brinton said. “Rampart’s a very composed team as well so we just had to keep each other up.”
With their backs against the wall going into the fourth set, the Rams came out swinging. Early on, the two teams battled back and forth, trading points along the way. Of the Rams’ first 11 points, four came on kills from Jin, who continued to try and will her team to a win.
“Janice is quick — real quick,” Waring said. “She’s such a dynamic player and when she’s moving laterally across the net there’s so much to watch that if you’re a half-second behind, the ball is down.”
League play has concluded for both teams, although they will play more regular season games prior to diving into districts, regionals and the state tournament.
Thursday, the Eagles host Fruita Monument, then travel to Ponderosa for the Mustang Classic on Saturday.
The Rams will play in the Cheyenne Mountain Tournament on Friday and Saturday where they could see either Cheyenne Mountain or Lewis-Palmer again. Both team beat Rampart earlier in the year.
The Rams will use the loss to the Eagles and the tournament this weekend to overcome adversity and prepare for playoffs where they are expected to make a deep run.
“Tonight (Pine Creek) did a good job on defense figuring us out,” Kinzer said. “We’re going to see more of that as we get into the postseason so it’s something we need to work on.”