Bartimoccia shot back, “Yeah, but we beat them in JV.”

At least give Boulder Creek this much: Confidence is not low for a team treating the 2006 season almost like it’s the school’s first season at varsity.

Speer, the varsity boys coach who led the Jaguars to a state tournament bid in the team’s first year last spring, took over the girls coaching duties as well. He immediately secured a roster full of players who were familiar with his disciplined style of  volleyball.

“He’s a great coach,” junior middle blocker Brittany Barnum said. “He’s demanding, but that’s a good thing.”

During one practice drill, Speer had his team sit in a crouching position against the wall along one end of the gym. He had the team hold the position for a few minutes.

“The more you work in  practice, ladies, the easier it will be in the games,” Speer yelled to his team.

This year’s Jaguars, which include senior left side hitter Debora Ciurdas, junior hitter Nicole Lentine, and freshman setter Lindsey Lovell, say conditioning has been the team’s biggest improvement since last season. In fact, the team has said everything has improved since last season–one in which nobody on the team can remember the final record.

“It’s like a new hope this year,” Bartimoccia said. “A new coach, a new season.”

Like many of the elite Arizona high school teams, Boulder Creek has a good number of club volleyball players on this year’s roster. Speer said his team’s improvement, plus what the players call a good mix of chemistry, could get the Jaguars into a top‑three finish in the Northwest Region and a spot in the 5A‑Division II state tournament for the first time.

“All the girls here respect each other,” Ciurdas said. “It’s a lot more positive.”

Reach the reporter at jason@thedesertadvocate.com.