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Mireya Tamayo jumps to hit the ball. On the court with her is Felicia Medina in the back court, Kadi Monfred watching, and Jade Barcello, Angela Navarro and Lyana Waddell. JT Alba | SMHS
San Manuel Miner
The Lady Miners split two matches last week, defeating Hayden on September 16 before losing to Pusch Ridge Christian Academy on September 18.
The Lady Miners swept the Lobos, 3 – 0 (25-23, 25-11, 25-21), coming from behind to win the first game after trailing by 11 points. Kadi Monfred and Felicia Medina led the Lady Miners with seven and six kills in the match, respectively.
After playing shorthanded for most of the early season, the Lady Miners finally had their full complement of players for the first time this season.
“Many of our girls were in the playing rotation and gaining valuable experience,” head coach Al Trejo said. “We finally had our entire roster back and (their) rust showed in the first game.”
Pusch Ridge swept the Lady Miners later in the week, 3 – 0 (6-25, 6-25, 11-25), dominating all three games in the match. The Miners were simply overpowered by the Lady Lions, a team expected to reach the state playoffs.
Mireya Tamayo was one bright spot against the PRCA, serving up seven aces in the match.
“We showed a lot of poise and improvement,” Trejo said about his team’s performance against the Lady Lions. “(We) played a lot better than the score reflects. We didn’t back down from the tough play by the Lions.”
The Lady Miners host Hayden on September 25.
Andrew Luberda began writing for Copper Area News Publishers (CANP) in February 2013 after working 15 years in Healthcare Financial Management. Andy covers sports for 11 high schools. His stories are published in Copper Basin News, San Manuel Miner and Superior Sun, in addition to the San Tan Valley Daily PRSS and CopperArea websites. Additionally, he has written human interest stories and business profiles. In May 2012, he earned an AAS in Sports Management at Central Arizona College before graduating with a BS in Communication from Arizona State University in 2014. He and his wife, Kelli, have three sons – AJ, Kyle, and Kade.
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