By whatever measure one chooses, 2025 will be judged as a superlative season for the Patagonia High volleyball program.
The 16-5 record, No. 7 ranking among 1A schools and second-place region finish are the best for the Lobos since 2015.
Now comes the 1A South all-region honors—one more indication of the Lobos’ excellence.
Patagonia placed four players on the all-region first team: seniors Emma Lewton and Brianna Majalca, junior Amaya Somoza and sophomore Monique Snell. A fifth Lobo, sophomore Nicole Cabrera, was a second-team selection. Ximena Gonzalez earned honorable mention. And first-year head coach Brenda Somoza was named 1A South Coach of the Year in voting by region coaches.
“That’s a huge deal,” Patagonia athletic director Nate Porter said. “Four on the first team, one on the second team, one honorable mention, that’s outstanding. And for Brenda to be honored by her peers, that’s a real honor.”
“I wasn’t expecting it, and it’s very much appreciated,” said Somoza, who guided the Lobos through some unanticipated adjustments after losing two senior starters midway through the season.
With a short bench to begin with, the roster turnover created ripples throughout the lineup. Cabrera moved into a starting position, and Lewton was forced to take on the role of middle blocker.
“We started with four seniors who were experienced, dialed in, ready to go, and it all fell apart halfway through the season,” Somoza said. “Adjusting to that, putting the girls in different roles halfway through, they stepped up big time, but it was definitely very challenging.
“Nicole is an incredible athlete, she did amazing, she just didn’t have the experience on the varsity level, so it was tough to be thrown in there like that.”
Somoza credited what she calls her “Core Four”—Lewton, Majalca, Somoza and Snell—with keeping the season on track.
“We relied on them 100 percent every single game,” she said. “I am so proud of them.”
Snell was the team’s top offensive force. “Her ability to put a ball away is unbelievable,” Somoza said. “Without her, a lot of those games would have looked a lot different. She was way more consistent in every respect: Serving, dynamite in the back row, played defense very, very well.”
Amaya Somoza, the coach’s daughter, was a steadying influence as setter and finished first in the state (all classifications) in service aces (1.6 per set). “Setting is a very, very tough position. You control the game, run the plays, it’s a lot of pressure,” coach Somoza said. “Your hitters’ success depends on your setting. She does amazingly well. We worked a lot over the spring and summer getting reps. She ended up No. 1 in the state for aces. I’m super proud of that.”
Co-captains Majalca and Lewton were versatile contributors and emotional leaders of the team.
Lewton’s willingness to take on middle blocker responsibilities was “huge,” Somoza said. “We’re lucky she’s just a super-athletic kid. I could play her anywhere and she would step in and deliver. If we could have started training her at middle from her freshman year, she would have been dynamite.”
Majalca, likewise, impressed her coach in a variety of ways. “Her defense is amazing,” Somoza said. “She’s very consistent with her serving and passing, and she’s always a leader out there. It doesn’t matter what happens on the court, she’s out there encouraging her teammates, staying positive.
“Bri and Emma are going to be really big shoes to fill. Their leadership on the court and within practice was amazing. It’s really hard with teenage girls to find true leaders. Everything I could have wanted as captains, they had it.”
Porter said Somoza deserves credit for putting her imprint on the team.
“She puts in the time. Her attention to detail is outstanding, and she builds positive relationships with her athletes,” he said. “She holds them accountable. You watch her during the games, she’s coaching them individually to be better.
“She knows it takes hard work to be great, and she modeled that to her student-athletes. She’s a great asset for our school.”
Porter said the team’s success was a point of pride for the entire school.
“It’s been a few years since any of our girls programs have had success like that,” he said. “It’s the kind of thing you can really build on. Student-athletes see success, and they strive for more success.”
Despite Patagonia’s loss to Fort Thomas in the state playoffs, Somoza feels good about all the Lobos achieved and is already looking forward to next year.
“We set some goals this year, and we definitely met them,” she said. “We beat Tombstone. We hosted a state playoff game. We didn’t beat St. David, but we competed with them. We had a lot of opportunity to play in tournaments during the season, and it made us stronger. I definitely want to do that again next year.
“If our school isn’t able to get a softball team, I’ll start open gym in the spring. I told the girls you need to be getting in your reps in the offseason so that we can hit the ground running when practice starts in the fall.”