STATE VOLLEYBALL: Pride bueno against Buena

It took less than an hour for Mountain Pointe to advance to the second round of the state Class 5A/4A-Division I boys state volleyball tournament.

"This is state and it's only four (matches) so you can't mess around," Mountain Pointe coach Fred Mann said after the Pride came out with playoff intensity to eliminate Sierra Vista Buena in three sets Tuesday night.

The Pride, seeded second, rolled over Buena (25-9, 25-7, 25-9) and will host Central Region rival Chandler Basha in the second round of the playoffs at 6:30 Thursday night.

The seventh-seeded Bears squeezed past No. 10 Mesa (26-24, 25-22, 27-25) at home.

Mountain Pointe swept the Bears in three games when the teams met during the regular season in early April.

"You can't come in light-headed or you'll get knocked out of the playoffs," Pride senior co-captain Nick Lounsbury said. "You have to come out full strength and with intensity."

Last season the top-seeded Pride learned that lesson too late after they went four games in the opening two rounds before losing to Gilbert Highland in the semifinals.

The Pride were never threatened by Buena in the opening round, taking a dominating lead in each game.

Senior Brandon Barna had nine kills and another nine serving aces. Bryan Lee has another six kills for the Pride and junior Alex Hamill had five digs. Lounsbury had another four kills for the Pride.