By Ryan Wright

The Sahuaro Cougars (18-6, 8-1) earned the right to host a first-round state tournament match by scoring an 18-25, 25-15, 25-22, 25-22 victory over the Rincon Rangers (17-12, 6-2) Tuesday.

With Rincon right on the heels of Sahuaro in the section, Tuesday’s match was a battle for second-place in the section and an automatic bid into the state tournament. Rincon began the match unfazed by the hostile environment inside McConnell Gymnasium and cruised to a 7-point victory in the first set behind an early 6-0 run led by the serving of junior Ivan Figueroa.

Business picked up in the third set as the teams traded the lead several times before the Cougars narrowly escaped with a 3-point victory.

Sahuaro senior Spencer DePaso had five assists in the third set and finished with a match-high 28 assists to go along with seven digs and two aces.

Rincon junior captain Joey Cable, who sat out the first two sets, racked up nine assists in each of the final two sets to finish with 18.

Opposing outside hitters were in direct competition throughout the match, as Sahuaro senior Cameron Detwiler and Rincon senior captain Diego Silva battled at the net.

Detwiler finished with 15 kills, eight blocks and ten digs for the Cougars, while Silva logged 24 kills, six blocks and an ace for the visiting Rangers.

Sahuaro senior Nathan Cornett announced to the crowd prior to the match that he committed to Arizona State University in the fall and then displayed the ASU pitchfork sign high above his head with both hands, much to the dismay of the Tucson-area crowd.

Cornett finished the match with three assists and seven digs.

Cougars’ junior Brendan Gary ended the match with nine kills, six blocks and an ace, and senior Eric Whitsell, who appeared to have his own entourage and cheering section, finished with six kills and two aces.

Rincon senior captain Brian Guerrero pitched in with nine kills and eight digs, and freshman Luis Rocha tallied 16 digs.

Sahuaro will host an opponent yet to be determined in the opening-round of the state tournament on Saturday, while Rincon will await the results of Tuesday’s matches before learning its postseason fate.

By Ryan Wright is a sports journalism student at Arizona State.