Game Details - Boys Volleyball

After taking a 2-1 lead No. 6 American Heritage knew it just needed to avoid a repeat of last years quarterfinal. Last year the Patriots took a 2-0 lead over Morgan but the Trojans came back to take the win. However, the Patriots did not prevail against No. 3 Morgan’s resilience and the Trojans fought back and won 25-17, 23-25, 21-25, 25-22 and 15-10. “You just never know how they're going to respond,” said Morgan head coach Kyle Komenda. “You hope that they respond well, but you've got a lot of negative stuff happening in the match and then you just have to find a way to put it behind you. We've been talking about that and really that's been the focus of we've been talking about the last two weeks that lead up to state.” Jack Komenda was an overwhelming force for the Trojans in the quarterfinal as he totaled 26 kills, 11 blocks and five aces. Madden Bell also helped significantly on defense with 14 blocks of his own. Kevin Wangsgard helped offensively with 12 kills of his own. After rallying back to tie the game 2-2, the Trojans ran away with the fifth set after starting with an 8-3 lead. It was a flashback to last years’ game against the Patriots where they reverse swept with a similarly dominant fifth set. “They have the confidence, not that they're flipping a switch on, but that they can battle back from adversity,” said Coach Komenda. “As long as there are points left to play, you got to keep fighting, and they showed that today. I’m super proud of them.” Morgan advances to the 3A semifinals where it will face Salt Lake Academy, which it already defeated once this season. Coach Komenda is adamant about not underestimating any opponent this late in the state tournament. “Heaven knows it's going to be whoever comes out with the most energy and the most confidence,” said Coach Komenda. “We cannot take them for granted. They're an excellent team.”