NMMI Sports Press
The New Mexico Military Institute is hosting the Region V West post-season volleyball tournament this weekend in the newly-remodeled Cahoon Armory gymnasium. The tourney begins Friday with a matchup between the Midland College Lady Chaps and the Frank Phillips College Lady Plainsmen at 5 p.m.
The Broncos earned the right to host by finishing atop the conference standings last season, and it’s great timing with Cahoon Armory freshly upgraded.
“We’re excited to have the tournament back here and to be able to host the teams in our beautiful gym,” said Bronco head coach Shelby Forchtner. “We’re trying to get back into the normal flow of things. We couldn’t socialize as much during Covid, so we’re happy to bring back the banquet and other up-close activities. It’s going to be a good time.”
The Broncos earned the second seed in the tournament, finishing behind top-seeded New Mexico Junior College, the only team in the Western Junior College Athletic Conference that has beat NMMI twice this season. The Broncos’ only other conference loss was to Midland College back on Oct. 1.
With the top two seeds comes the advantage of not playing on Day 1, but to win the tourney, NMMI will have to defeat two top-tier foes on Day 2, starting with a noon Saturday date with the winner of Friday's 7 p.m. game between Odessa College and Texas Western.
NMJC will play the winner of Friday's 5 p.m. bout. That match will be played at 10 a.m. Saturday. The winners of the first two Saturday games will meet at 4 p.m. for the championship with the winner earning a trip to nationals in West Plains, Missouri.
Since losing a close match at NMJC on Oct. 8, the Broncos have won six straight to close out the regular season, dropping just two sets during the streak while defeating a ranked Odessa team on their floor and avenging a 3-2 home loss to Midland with a road sweep.
“We’re always a team that works hard to be playing our best volleyball at the end,” Forchtner said. “And we actually still like each other, so that’s good. We’ve been trying to be really relaxed in practice. We’re playing at a high level that I think we can sustain. Our kids are peaking at the right time and that’s good, because this comes down to playing your best on a single day.”
The Broncos have several offensive options that have played at a high level recently, with sophomore outside hitter Baby Moleni and freshman middle blocker Vitoria Oliveira each earning the past two conference offensive Player of the Week awards.
Defensively, the Broncos have been led by the quick eyes and sure hands of sophomore libero Mio Yamamoto. An All-American as a freshman, Yamamoto has built on her impressive resume this season with seven regional Player of the Week honors and two national recognitions.
The Broncos won last year's tourney and made a huge run at nationals, making it to the title game and losing by the closest of margins.
NMJC also has two players that have garnered national acclaim in outside hitter Iva Popovic and setter Lacie Schooley, a Goddard High product. Several other WJCAC teams were nationally ranked throughout the season with as many as three teams in the top 15 on any given week, with one or two receiving votes as well.
While only the winner of the tournament receives an automatic bid to nationals, there are two at-large bids that will be decided after all regional tourneys wrap up.
“I hope that because of the competitiveness of our region over the entire season that one of our teams gets that at-large bid,” said Forchtner. “It’s a long shot with so many teams all over the country vying for two spots, but our conference has shown how good it really is.”
Forchtner hopes to see a good local crowd show up to support the Broncos and see competitive matches between the other visiting teams.
“I would love to see the same kind of crowd you get when Roswell and Goddard battle it out,” she said. “Those same sports fans will love our brand of fast-paced, high-level volleyball, which is all you’ll see Friday and Saturday. Whether we are playing or not, the games will be fun and exciting.”