Written by Bob Snell
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A year ago, Virgin Valley High School's boys volleyball program played its own schedule in its first year and was not even eligible to participate in postseason play.
Now, in its first season sanctioned by the Nevada Interscholastic Activities Association, Virgin Valley will be playing for a state championship.
The Bulldogs defeated Western of Las Vegas 3-0 on Tuesday, May 7th. Coral Academy of Science Las Vegas won 3-1 on Thursday, advancing to this week's 3A state championship game against top-seeded Boulder City, both at home.
The state title match will be played at Sunrise Mountain High School in Las Vegas on Tuesday, May 14th at 3 p.m. The two teams met earlier in the season, with Boulder City winning 3-0.
“It's exciting to be playing in a state championship,” VVHS head coach Courtney Tobler said. “It's our first year, but what we've accomplished is amazing. These boys have worked hard and earned the right to be here.”
In the quarterfinals on Tuesday, the Bulldogs defeated Western by scores of 25-18, 25-15, 25-22.
Nate Pandjaitan led Virgin Valley with 33 assists, 13 digs and three aces. McKay Mulitalo added 14 kills and nine digs, and Destry Tobler had 13 kills and 10 digs. Parker Jensen had 11 kills, Andrew Muniz had 13 goals and Aiden Muniz had three aces.
In Thursday's semifinal game against Coral Academy, the Bulldogs won by scores of 25-18, 25-22, 28-30, 25-20.
The Bulldogs pulled away late and won the first two games. In the first match, Jensen, Mulitalo, and Connor Averett all had big kills in the closing stages, with Jensen winning the match with a kill.
In the second game, Bryant Denninghoff's ace gave Virgin Valley a 19-18 lead. Jensen and Tobler added big kills to maintain the advantage, and Mulitalo's kill was the game-winner.
The lead waxed and waned in the third game, with Coral Academy holding off two match points and winning the final three points to take it to the fourth game.
In the fourth game, Pandjaitan stepped up to serve and Virgin Valley led 13-11. The senior scored nine straight points to give the Bulldogs a 22-11 lead.
Coral Academy scored six straight points to close the gap to 22-17, but a kill from Jensen stopped the run and set up a kill from Mulitalo to end the game.
“We played hard,” Tobler said. “We had some kids that worked hard for us. I thought Parker had a dynomite week. His trajectory has been huge since the beginning of the year.”
Mulitalo powered Virgin Valley's attack with 14 kills and 14 digs, and Destry Tobler added 14 kills and four aces. Jensen had 13 kills, Andrew Muniz added 16 digs and Pandjaitan had 40 assists.
The Bulldogs have one game left.
“Boulder City is a great team,” Tobler said. “If we come out and play as well as we can, it's going to be a hell of a game. The best thing about all of this is we're playing for a state title. I’m so proud of these boys.”