Tournament #4

Zia's 16's boys got off to a slow start this weekend but bounced back wonderfully in the second half of the day.  The day started with a rematch of the last game from two weeks ago. Unfortunately the results were the same, a two game loss to Molten 16's Blue.  Next up was Mesa 18's. Game one was a struggle but game two showed signs of life as the boys started to wake up a little bit and begin to put things together.  Still, Mesa won the match in two games.  After a break for lunch, Zia's boys came to life. Defense and serving picked up and Zia won the match 25-18, 28-26.  Zia held off a great comeback attempt by Molten 16's Red in game two to emerge victorious.  Finally, Zia played Club VOS 16's for about the fifth time this year. The results were favorable for Zia again. Serving and defense again led the way with 5 blocks, 14 Aces, and 16 total team digs in the match to lead Zia to a 25-19, 25-10 victory.  The turnaround from the beginning of the day had everyone going home with smiles and looking forward to the next opportunity in Tucson on the 22nd.  Good job guys!!

Tournament #2

First, an update from this weekend...Our second tournament of the year started off slow but quickly rebounded with a convincing 2 game victory over Club VOS 16s  25-23, 25-12.  The boys then faced off against one of the tougher teams we have seen thus far and stumbled out of the gates in game one losing 25-16. Game two saw an incredible turnaround defensively as the boys played their best defense yet staying with the older opponent right up to the end losing 25-22 to Club Cochise 18 Thundercats.  The final match of the day pitted the Zia boys against Club Rage 16s for a third place spot. Zia pulled through for the win in game three with an amazing come from behind win after trailing 8-1 at the side change! Great job guys!

Tournament #1

After only three weeks of practice the Zia Boys 16s team took to the courts for the first time last weekend.  A quick officials clinic added to the tension and anxiety for all the teams but play began soon enough. The first two matches were met with mixed results. The boys showed flashes of brilliance while spending most of the match scrambling to be certain they were doing things correctly.  The boys battled through each match but ended up losing both by slim margins of 25-21, 25-22  and 25-21, 25-20.  As the evening wore on the team became visibly more comfortable on the floor and captured their first win. The three game victory was a boost to confidence and energy levels and was highlighted by a beautifully executed quick attack out of the middle that wowed the crowd. Zia wrapped up the evening by exacting a little revenge from an earlier loss by beating a team they lost to earlier in the tournament. The 2-2 record was good start to the season and the boys look forward to continued improvement as they prepare for this weekend (10/11) in Mesa.

Assistant Coach Patrick Hiltz

Learned to play and love volleyball in Santa Barbara, CA and was blessed with a great high school coach and teammates the likes of Todd Rogers and Dax Holdren.  While he never reached the playing prowess of many other San Marcos high school players, Hiltz has enjoyed teaching the game of volleyball to others since before he graduated high school. In 1994 he joined the coaching staff at Flagstaff High School where he was an assistant coach for 5 years. During his time in Flagstaff, Hiltz also coached Juniors for Peaks VBC (later High Altitude). Hiltz left FHS and soon after accepted the Head Coach position for the NAU Women's Club Volleyball Team for the 1999-2000 season where he guided them to a 5th place finish at the NIRSA Nationals (thier highest ever). Immediately following that season, Hiltz left for Las Vegas where he finished his Bachelor's Degree in Physical Education at UNLV. He then accepted a teaching position and continued to coach for Foothill HS in Henderson, NV. He served as Varsity assistant coach for the girls and boys teams for 4 years before taking over the girls program for a year. He now joins Zia looking to continue teaching others to love volleyball the way he was taught to love the game many years ago.