Former Aurora prep volleyball stars lead Metro State

The Metro State volleyball team is currently off to a 13-5 start to the 2010 season and is ranked 18th in the country, with a pair of former Aurora prep volleyball stars helping to lead the way in Eaglecrest graduate Darcy Schwartzman and Cherokee Trail alum Bri Morley.

Darcy Schwartman

Schwartzman — a key member on the Eaglecrest team that went 31-0 and won the Class 5A state championship in 2006 — was named Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Setter of the Week on Oct. 11, in recognition of a week that saw the junior setter average 11.9 assists per match in sweeps of Colorado College and Colorado School of Mines and a five-set win over UC-Colorado Springs. In the UCCS match, Schwartzman had a career-high 61 assists and added 22 digs. She earned the RMAC Setter of the Week award for the second time this season.
It's not the only good news for members of Eaglecrest's 2006 championship team.
On Sept. 27, Jordan Kissman — a 2007 Eaglecrest grad — was named Summit League women's volleyball Offensive Player of the Week as she led her North Dakota State team to wins over Oral Roberts and Centenary. Kissman — a redshirt freshman — made her first collegiate start against Oral Roberts and had 33 assists, which was followed by 45 more against Centenary. 
Courtney Karst, the star middle blocker on Eaglecrest's championship team, is thriving at the University of Arizona. The 6-foot-1 junior pounded out 22 kills in a win over Oregon, part of a week in which the Wildcats earned their way into the American Volleyball Coaches Association's Top 25 national poll at No. 25. 
Karst's younger sister Bailey is a senior on this season's Eaglecrest team, which has won its first 15 matches of the season.
Back at Metro State, Morley reached a milestone by becoming the 10th player in Metro State history to pass the 1,000 career kills mark. The junior outside hitter pounded a career-high 24 kills on Oct. 9 against UCCS to move her career total to 1,029.