Ese Lafaele of the University of Texas at El Paso’s Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps spikes the ball as German Air Force defenders Timo Habig, left, and Sven Menger leap up to block it. Photo by Dustin Perry.
UTEP cadets slide into second place in post volleyball league
Dustin Perry, Editor
A team of college students playing in the post volleyball league slid into second place with a 4-0 record after narrowly defeating the German Air Force in a three-game match Tuesday at Milam Gym.
Cadets from the University of Texas at El Paso’s Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps staged an impressive come-from-behind victory against the Germans in the final two games of the match, winning them by scores of 25-19 and 15-12.
UTEP’s roster was far more attack-centric in their approach than their opponents, never letting a volley go on for too long before setting up Matt Sebastian or John Bryan Serrano for a screaming spike or misleading tap into a vacant spot on the Germans’ side of the court. However, the Germans were not without their own impressive line of towering defenders, who used constant communication and vertical advantage to win the first game 25-18.
Players like Ortwen Karstens, Sven Menger and Andreas Rau did their best to match UTEP’s relentless attacks from Sebastian, whom they were seldom safe from, even when he was positioned in the back row. Volker Kohlmann often exploited holes in the cadets’ defense, sending quick, downward hits to UTEP’s oft-weak outside corners.
The German Air Force’s Volker Kohlmann spikes the ball as Jose Bustillos of the University of Texas at El Paso’s Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps attempts to block it during a game Tuesday at Milam Gym. Photo by Dustin Perry.
UTEP took a commanding lead from the start of the second game, but the win did not come easy. A series of mistakes caused their 10-point lead to shrink to 3, and frustration seemed to set in for the cadets. Sonya Vargo, UTEP’s team captain, said it was vital at this point in the game for her team to get back on track.
“I told them, ‘Don’t play for you, play for the team,’” said Vargo. “It seemed to change their mentality because they no longer got mad at themselves when they made a mistake.”
UTEP finally managed to wrap up the second game, forcing a third that would be played to 15 points. The two teams were neck and neck, often trading one serve or side out after another. A flubbed serve from Karstens gave UTEP an 8-7 lead and the teams switched sides for the mid-game split.
“When we switched sides, I told everyone that if we played hard and stayed positive, we could win as a team,” said Vargo. “For us being the ‘underdogs,’ that gave us more of an incentive to just get the 15 points and end it.”
Despite a missed serve from UTEP’s Jose Bustillos that put the Germans within two points of the cadets, a match-winning spike from Charles Powell gave UTEP the conclusion they were hoping for.
“We’ve grown a lot as a team (since last year) and were able to keep it together and keep the intensity up in the second and third games,” said Vargo. “We’re not going to underestimate anyone; we’re going to give 110 percent all season.”
Torsten Brunke, the Germans’ team captain, had very little to say after the game, revealing only that his team views the regular season as a primer for how the championship tournament will be. Their game against UTEP was challenging and a tough loss, Brunke said, but the lessons they learned from it will help them in the long run.
“I saw this as a training game, so our team’s performance can get better,” said Brunke. “But we like to play against UTEP because they always have fun.”