The Patagonia High volleyball team got its first taste of defeat last weekend, but while it didn’t go down easily, it might have been a perfect appetizer for what’s to come.
What’s to come is back-to-back courses of critical 1A conference matches for the Lobos, starting with a home game on Wednesday night against four-time defending region champion St. David, followed by a road match on Sept. 23 vs. Fort Thomas, which knocked Patagonia out of the state tournament last year.
The Lobos played four matches over a span of six hours on Saturday at the Epic Tourneys Small School Invite in Scottsdale, losing their first three before finishing the tournament with a victory over Tempe Prep. All four of the matches were against Class 2A schools, which was by design.
“I told the tournament director we wanted to play tougher teams, we don’t want to play 1A competition,” coach Brenda Somoza said. “It’s good for the girls to see that kind of competition, because that’s what we can expect these next couple of games.
“Sometimes it’s not about winning. It’s about learning what you have to work on get better.”
In that regard, it was mission accomplished. Somoza said the Lobos realistically had a shot at going 2-2 in the tournament, but “the other two teams, even on our best days, I don’t think we would have beat them.”
Somoza wasn’t looking for excuses, but an early morning wakeup call and three-hour bus trip to Phoenix prior to their first match at 10 a.m. didn’t exactly play to the Lobos’ strengths. “We’re not just morning people,” she said. “We should have played better than we did.”
St. David also competed in the Epic event, going 2-2. Against common opponents, both the Lobos and St. David went 1-2.
Freshman Thais Snell goes up for the kill against Duncan. (Photo by Dave Lumia) 
Sophomore Charlotte Myers goes up for a shot. (Photo by Dave Lumia) 
Senior Amaya Somoza tips the ball over the net. (Photo by Dave Lumia) 
The Lobos celebrate a point in the third set. (Photo by Dave Lumia) 
Monique Snell chats with Duncan players following Patagonia’s victory. (Photo by Dave Lumia)
The Lobos have now competed in two tournaments, going 5-3, but those matches don’t count toward state rankings. Their official record is 5-0, with the fifth victory coming by a score of 25-15, 25-19, 25-15 over Duncan last Thursday.
After the Duncan victory, Somoza also pointed out areas for the Lobos to up their game.
“We’ve got to find other ways to score,” she said. “We can’t just rely on Monique (Snell). So we tried to run some different plays, and yeah, we’ve just got to keep working at it.”
Inconsistent serving has been another sore spot, but Somoza complimented her team on its receptiveness to coaching and the desire to improve.
“I upload all our games to YouTube and I tell them, you need to watch it and tell me some things you did wrong and some things you did good,” she said. “And I think that’s really helped them. It’ll translate better if you see yourself doing it.”
St. David also had a 5-0 record entering Tuesday night’s home game against Duncan. The Tigers are 26-0 in region matches over the last four seasons and haven’t lost to Patagonia since 2015. The Lobos nearly ended that losing streak last year but were unable to close out the match after winning two of the first three sets.
“I think it’s going to be a heck of a match,” Somoza said. “St. David’s a good team, but we’re a good team too.”
The Lobos are hoping to get a boost from the hometown crowd.
“Our girls thrive off that energy,” Somoza said. “It’s always good to have community support for these big games.”