St. Michael's Lady Horsemen Hold Top Seed in 3A Volleyball State Bracket

The St. Michael's Lady Horsemen entered the Class 3A state volleyball tournament as the No. 1 seed after finishing the regular season with a 16-7 record. The team claimed the District 2-3A title for the fifth consecutive year, a feat that has also secured the top seed in the state bracket for five straight seasons. The tournament is set to begin Thursday at the Rio Rancho Events Center.

St. Michael's achieved the top ranking despite a rocky start that saw the team drop six of its first seven matches. A 10-match winning streak to close the regular season, combined with a strong non-district schedule, propelled the Lady Horsemen to the top of the MaxPreps.com rankings two weeks before the season ended. This performance overcame the expectations that Hot Springs, a 20-3 team, would hold the number one position.

Valerie Sandoval, the Lady Horsemen head coach, attributed the team's late surge to a focused effort on their mental approach. "We’ve had a talk the whole year about just putting it together," Sandoval said. "We’ve really focused on strengthening our mental game, and I think you can tell the difference."

Santa Fe Indian School earned the third seed in the 3A bracket. The Lady Braves rebounded from a 1-2 start in district play to win six of their final seven matches. This improvement moved the team up to the No. 3 spot in the MaxPreps.com rankings. Head coach Joseph Garcia noted that the program's sustained improvement over his six-year tenure has established a strong identity for SFIS volleyball.

The New Mexico Activities Association released brackets for all five classifications on Sunday. First-round and quarterfinal matches will take place in Rio Rancho or Bernalillo. The tournament utilizes a modified double-elimination format that concludes once the semifinal matchups are determined.

In other Bernalillo County matchups, Los Alamos secured the fifth seed in the 4A bracket and will face No. 12 Belen at 10 a.m. Thursday. McCurdy received the sixth seed in 2A and plays No. 11 Ramah at Rio Rancho High School. Questa, competing in its first year in 1A, holds the seventh seed and faces No. 10 Fort Sumner/House at noon at Bernalillo High School.

The Santa Fe High Demonettes will not participate in the state tournament. The team finished the season with an 11-12 record and a 5-5 district mark, tying for third in District 2-5A. This marks the first time in four years that the Demonettes have missed the state event.