Gunnison volleyball swings with confidence

Confidence to hit hard could be what helps the Gunnison volleyball team reach its full potential.

The Cowboys went 0-2 on Aug. 13 against Alamosa and Centauri, but senior outside hitter Aubrey Welfelt thought GHS handled its step up in competition well. The Mean Moose are ranked No. 2 and the Falcons No. 7 in the Class 3A Selection and Seeding Index on CHSAANow.com.

While Alamosa posted a 3-0 win, GHS took Centauri to a fifth set before they dropped a 3-2 decision.

“Centauri and Alamosa are good teams,” Welfelt said. “We knew we would have good competition and came so close to winning both. We were just a couple points off in both games. We learned what we need to do to keep our energy up, but also learned how hard we have to play to keep up with those kinds of teams.”

If the Cowboys can establish an offense that gets them consistently attacking, it will place pressure on opponents’ defense. That’s where Welfelt said GHS has to be willing to take big swings.

“We’ve got to swing hard every play,” Welfelt said. “We’ve got to have the confidence to take charge. We’ve got to keep our offense aggressive and hit it to the ground. That way no one can dig it or tip it back at us.”

Aubriel Loken has shifted between positions through her high school career. She played setter as a freshman, defensive specialist as a sophomore, returned to the setter position as a junior and has now settled in as libero for her final campaign.

As a utility player that can do it all, Loken has transitioned from right back to middle back. She’s adjusted to the different spin on the ball and said she believes she spends more time diving for balls.

“This weekend I figured out how to change my mindset,” Loken said. “It felt really good that the mentality shift I was waiting for took place. As a libero I needed to be more aggressive, I didn’t need that as a setter. I played more intensely and fast paced.”

As the Cowboys look to make it back to state for consecutive seasons, Loken’s maturation into a new position and the new players pushing a pair of challenging teams gives GHS a road map of what to work on.

“I think the games with Alamosa and Centauri highlighted where we are strong and also showed where we lack in some spots,” Loken said. “Even though we lost, it was beneficial.”

(James Nokes writes for Colorado Preps.)