After qualifying for Regionals for the first time since 2011, the Mancos High School volleyball team set its sights on state.
An appearance by the Bluejays in this year's state tournament was not to be, however, as Mancos lost twice at the Class 2A Region G Tournament in Dolores on Nov. 1.
Struggling to deal with the Bears hitting attack, Mancos lost to the region's top-seeded team, 25-11, 25-12, 25-20.
"We played strong, but there's definitely a (mental) blockage when we play Dolores," said Bluejays head coach Brittany Lang.
Leading the way for the Bluejays against Dolores were Jessica Gutierrez, Taryn Gordanier and Courtney Colyer, who all scored several points for the Bluejays.
"I feel like we all wanted to win so bad," said Nicole Hess. "We were disappointed in the end, but we played our hardest."
Thirty minutes after concluding its match against Dolores, Mancos faced off against Cedaredge, which entered the match with a 19-4 record.
While the Bluejays played well at times during the match, Cedaredge's relentless hitting proved too much as the Bluejays fell 25-23, 25-15, 26-24.
Leading the Bluejays in the match was Courtney Colyer, whose four kills late in the first game kept Mancos close.
In the third game, the Bluejays were aided by well-placed sets from Jessica Gutierrez, hard hits by Gordanier and Morgan Lincoln, and several strong serves by Taylor Goff.
With its loss to Cedaredge, Mancos wrapped up its season with a 13-11 record after finishing last year 5-14. The season marked the first time the Bluejays had qualified for Regionals since 2011.
"This season was the best I've ever coached," Lang said. "We had a bunch of good people on and off the court."
Although Mancos will lose seniors Jessica Willburn, Maya Bonde, Colyer, Lincoln and Goff to graduation before next season, Lang believes the program's future will be bright.
"We need to work on execution," said Lang. "We've talked about how every player has a role on the team. Throughout the offseason, we'll continue to work to improve."
