Salpointe continues to find footing in second year of sand volleyball

Tucked away toward the back of the Tucson Racquet Club, Salpointe Catholic’s sand volleyball team took an important step towards qualifying for state in their first home match of the season on Wednesday afternoon.

The Lancers (2-2) swept Tempe Corona del Sol on a sunny mid-70s spring afternoon to pick up their first section win of the still-young season and equal their win total from a year ago.

“Last year was fun, this year we’re trying to take a step in a more competitive direction,” said Salpointe coach Heather Moore-Martin, continues to double as the boys indoor coach during the spring. “We are asking more of them. More focus, more determination.”

With the win, the Lancers moved into third place in their league at 1-1 – an important jump considering the top four teams from each of two nine-team sections qualify for the postseason in Division I.

Arizona was the first state association to add sand volleyball as an official sport, starting in 2011. In all, the state now has 27 teams, which is up from 18 a year ago.

Salpointe’s second-year program was the first high school from Southern Arizona to get involved but Ironwood Ridge jumped in on the fun by adding a program this year.

“I think it’s just great that I-Ridge has picked it up,” Moore-Martin said. “It’s another, ‘Hey we’re not going to be quiet down here.’ Now that we’ve said here we’re ready, we’re going to be forces to reckon with.”

The Lancers, however are still looking to fill one more regular season match after a pair of programs folded to start the year, leaving them one short of the 10-match regular season needed to be eligible to reach the state tournament.

Moore-Martin is hoping to add a second match against I-Ridge to fill the opening. Her Lancers are scheduled to close out the season against the Nighthawks on April 20.

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With multiple TUSD teams now considering adding sand volleyball, the hope reamins to have an all-Tucson section in the near future.

Salpointe’s top pairing, sophomores Alanna Duarte and Peyton Lewis went undefeated in five matches last season. Taking up the sports in middle school, this year the libero-setter duo have split their four matches so far this season.

“They have a history,” said Moore-Martin. "They’ve had a lot of success and now some teams have put some pressure on them, so now they have to figure out how to deal with adversity.”

Added Duarte: “There’s a lot more touches on the sand. It’s just you two; you have to recover quickly.”

The Lancers added plenty of firepower of their own in their second season, when Carly Lowry and Allie Weaver showed up to be the No. 2 pairing. Lowry was the Star’s girls volleyball player of the year in the fall while Weaver is the team’s top blocker.

The seniors are 3-1 on the season, the same as Salpointe’s third pairing of junior Maggie Schepelmann and senior Arica Christiensen, who also helped the Lancers reach the Division II state semifinals in the fall.

“It’s really challenging to pick it up at first because it’s really hard to move in the sand,” Lewis said. “It’s just a totally different game but once you get the hang of it, you just fall in love with it.

"Playing on a beach-like setting, it’s just a more relaxed environment. The wind, the sun, the sand. A bunch of different factors. It’s so much fun.”