High school volleyball: 5A title up for grabs after tough region races

More than any other in recent memory, this year's 5A state volleyball title could belong to any of the half-dozen top-ranked teams.

A three-way tie in Region 4 made this year's brackets the most interesting. Pleasant Grove beat both Lehi and Lone Peak in the first round of region play, but both teams managed to earn wins at home in their rematch with the Vikings. Then Lone Peak avenged an earlier loss to Lehi.

"We all knew it was going to be a competitive region," said head coach Lori Salvo of top-ranked Davis. "Ours was pretty similar. Syracuse only won two matches and they took a game off us every time we played them."

The traditional favorites are looking like contenders, regardless of record.

"Lone Peak seems to be the team peaking right now," said fourth-ranked Taylorsville head coach Rich Kaelin.

Tiebreakers, however, put the Knights as the region's No. 3 seed. That means a tough draw for Region 2 No. 2 seed Hunter in the first round of the tournament. Taking on the defending 5A champions would be tough, but Lone Peak has developed such a tradition, they're tough to beat — regardless of the personnel on the floor. This year's team has talent like Brynne Sorrell, Arizona State commit Kizzy Willey, and Raegan Lindsey, but it's their tradition that may give them the kind of edge that really matters during the playoffs.

"I think sometimes in a tournament like this, just having the edge, knowing you can do it and that you've been there is an advantage," said Salvo, who knows about winning back-to-back titles. "I went down and watched them play Lehi at home. It was senior night, their crowd was there and it totally got in Lehi's head. Lone Peak also just beat Pleasant Grove. They have that edge because of who they are."

That does not mean, however, that any one of the teams that have found themselves in the rankings couldn't walk away with the title.

The Darts lost just one region game to Fremont, which they avenged in the second meeting of the two squads.

The Darts have a tough first-round draw in Jordan, and they could face Pleasant Grove, last year's runner-up in 5A, in the second round of play. The Darts are led by Camille Walker and Candace Richins.

The Warriors won the Region 2 title without a loss and have played tough or have beaten most of the state's top teams. On Oct. 20-22, Taylorsville also won the Nike Tournament of Champions, in which they played tough out-of-state opponents.