From the stirring rendition of the national anthem to the home player introductions and postgame celebration, the energy at Ironwood High was electric. 

Its boys volleyball team fed off that atmosphere to advance to the 5A state semifinals. The Eagles came into Tuesday’s match with some extra motivation.

Dropping their only Northwest Valley Region regular season match to rival Centennial in five sets left a bitter taste. This time, Ironwood made sure it left with the sweet taste of victory after sweeping Centennial, 25-20, 25-19, 25-19.

“The environment tonight was amazing,” said sixth-year coach Damon Mays, a former Ironwood player. “Honestly, it helped us in every way possible. There’s so much history between us and Centennial, and so much was at stake. The crowd was really behind us and supporting us. They showed up in a huge way, and it was really beneficial.”

The strong fan support reminded Mays of the throng of fans cheering for Ironwood during its state semifinal victory in 2023. 

From the start of the season, Ironwood’s goal was to return to the big game once again. To accomplish that, it will have to defeat a solid Arizona College Prep squad, the 5A runner-up last year, on Thursday.

“Why not,” Mays said. “Why not this be the year."  

Not only is Ironwood backed by a good crowd, but it also relies on a solid core of seniors to get their fans and themselves hyped and performing at a high level.

Despite getting swept, Centennial was in the match the entire time.

The outcome of each set came down to a couple of plays down the stretch. 

Ironwood led 19-17 in the final set when Centennial argued a player illegally contacted the ball during a bang-bang play. Ironwood wound up with the point after its setter, Jayden Trubl, found an open spot on Centennial’s side.

A passing error and timeout by Centennial followed. A couple of points later came the rally of the match to help Ironwood keep the momentum. 

It closed it out when Trubl torqued his body to face the net before perfectly releasing a side set to the far right pin, where the high-flying Cuen Griffin took care of business. 

“I believe it was just energy,” said Trubl about what was different this time around facing Centennial. “This game, we wanted it back. We wanted revenge. They took us out also in the playoffs last year. We wanted it back. We’re the No. 1 state seed for a reason.”

Cuen had his share of highlight-reel kills, but Centennial also was prepared, blocking him a couple of times. 

Centennial's Cedric Handy especially had a read on Cuen. But after each block, Cuen responded with a tip or kill for a point almost every time.

“That’s huge,” said Cuen about reaching the semis. “We didn’t even make it past the first round last year."

That Centennial (19-10) made it to the quarterfinals after what it lost last year says a lot about the character of this year’s roster.

“It’s a great group of kids,” Centennial first-year coach Pierce Stewart said. “We lost 12 seniors when we won region last year, and the head coach retired after 20 years. Nobody thought we could do anything, and those kids showed everybody what brotherhood looks like.” 

Senior Jacob Bagwell stepped up to the challenge and had his share of big moments putting away sets.

Centennial teammate Jose Barraza Ramirez, a libero, was in the right spot most of the match, digging his team out of trouble even while facing some high-velocity kill attempts.
The pressure will ramp up even more come Thursday for top-seeded 30-6 Ironwood. But it seems it has the veterans, including opposite Conner Forsberg, outside Chance Lagoni, and middle Whestly Stuart, in place to deal with the intensity of a Final 4 showdown.

Plus, it'll have one of the best home crowd advantages. One of Ironwood’s youngest fans, seven-year-old Mason May, got the postgame party started Tuesday with a dance routine as fans encircled him. 

“He’s always out for a good time,” said his mom, Rachell, a cheer coach and special ed teacher at Ironwood. 

Ironwood will see on Thursday if it can keep the party and Mason rolling.