The Fountain Hills High School volleyball team placed third in the Coconino Classic in Flagstaff Sept. 15-16.

The team has won three non-tournament games in a row. The first official AIA rankings release Wednesday, Sept. 26, put the Falcons in the No. 2 ranking for 3A, according to MaxPreps.

The MaxPreps ranking system values strength of schedule, and Fountain Hills went 3-2 against 4A, 5A and 6A teams in the Coconino Classic. The Falcons started 1-2 but bounced back with two solid wins on the second day of the tournament.

“Salpointe Catholic is the team that beat our beach team [in the playoffs] last season 0-5,” head coach Olivia Long said. “We had a really big win over them. We came out and we shut them and Prescott down really fast. We had to play one set to 30 because it was the loser’s bracket of the tournament.”

The Falcons are anchored by the veteran experience and leadership of six seniors, but junior Kitrick Garman was named the team MVP by opposing coaches in the tournament. Fellow junior Zoe Kohoutek received MVP honors when the Falcons placed first in the Longhorn Invitational.

The Falcons fell to Flagstaff and Lake Havasu, but Long said they could have beaten Lake Havasu if not for errors and missed serves. The Falcons rallied and carried their momentum from the second day against Payson and Camp Verde on back-to-back nights.

“The only time that there was a hiccup was the third set in Payson,” Long said. “We dropped that and we didn’t drop that for lack of skill on our part…The girls played really consistent. We covered really well. Our offense was smooth. We played really well the last two days.”

The Falcons beat Payson 3-1 Monday, Sept. 18, and Camp Verde 3-0 (25-8, 25-12, 25-14) Tuesday, Sept. 19. They close out their seven-game road journey next week and face off against the No. 4 and No. 5 ranked teams on MaxPreps.

Fountain Hills travels to Scottsdale Christian on Tuesday, Sept. 26, and Wickenburg on Wednesday, Sept. 27. Then the Falcons host last year’s state runner-up, Northwest Christian, on Thursday, Sept. 28. All varsity games start at 6 p.m.

Long said the Falcons need to be confident and have to tap into their mental reserves and everything they’ve built on in the last three seasons against Scottsdale and Northwest Christian. The Falcons kick off a six-game home stretch against Northwest Christian, and will host Bourgade Catholic Monday, Oct. 2, and Chino Valley Wednesday, Oct. 4.