Elizabeth Agazaryan is an ASU Cronkite School of Journalism student assigned to cover Valley Vista High School for AZPreps365.com

The Xavier Prep Gators (13-1, 0-0) showed off their strong offense, winning in three straight sets over Valley Vista, 25-14, 25-11, 25-14, on Wednesday.

Senior opposite hitter Annemarie O’Gara led the match in kills, recording 12 of the Gators’ 35  kills.  

The match was a tough, but rewarding contest for the Valley Vista Monsoon (9-6, 1-0), who added this non-region game to their schedule to prepare for the rest of the season. Last season Xavier Prep finished first in their region and were ranked second in Arizona with a record of 27-6. 

“I’m just really grateful that we got to play this team,” junior opposite hitter Ava Hewitt said. “Coach said, ‘We don’t have to play this team, we get to play this team,’ so I’m grateful.” 

The night started strong for the Monsoon, who were able to keep the first set close at 8-8 until an 8-0 run by the Gators led them to win 25-14. Even with the first-set loss, senior outside hitter Marielle Ramos made her presence known in the first set, recording five of the Monsoon’s seven kills.

“I thought we fought really hard,” Ramos said. “I mean, Xavier's a really tough team, but we battled through it. And I think battling against tough teams will help us improve for our future.”

The Gators won the second set much more easily, 25-11, partly  due to  outside hitter Amari Frazier. The freshman came out of the second set with five kills and one block, ending the night with nine kills and one block. 

“She's getting better every day and getting more comfortable with our transition, and getting super comfortable with our offense that we're running,” Gators Coach Lamar-Reneé Bryant said. “So we're relying on her and giving her more opportunities to swing the balls away.”

Valley Vista was able to come back from multiple deficits at the beginning of set three before Xavier went on a 16-6 streak to end the match, 25-14.

Despite the loss, the Monsoon gave it their all and felt improvement from the beginning of the season. 

“We're still growing,” Monsoon Coach David Chavez said. “I'm blessed that I get to coach these kids. I'm happy with the way they played, they battled, they did very, very well, and nobody's crying. So we're good.”

Valley Vista (9-6, 1-0) will travel to Tolleson High School (2-7, 1-0) for a region match Thursday at 6 p.m. Xavier Prep (13-1, 0-0) will travel to Desert Vista High School (13-12, 1-0) for a 6 p.m. match Thursday.