Deer Valley boys volleyball is almost always a good team, and occasionally great.

Typically, the Skyhawks are at their best with a large senior class. But the 2018 edition looks like a 5A state title contender, with a 5-0 record in conference play (6-1 overall).

And this time, the juniors are leading the charge.

"We’ve been friends since middle school and now it’s just all chemistry from working together," junior outside hitter Ben Nguyen said.

Juniors Nguyen, Nathan Chapparo, Jack Puentes, Matthew Beard, Fiamuhr Ghasi and Nathan Schrade form the core of the lineup.

But they have more volleyball experience than most seniors. Plus most of them have played together for years and currently play for Club Fusion in the high school offseason.

"We’ve got a lot of club players because coach Palmer runs Club Fushion. They all play together and that experience is very strong," Deer Valley co-coach Kim Ulrich-Suss said.

The class of 2018 in not invisible. Senior setter Matthew Geiser earned all tournament honors at Kellis. Justin Ferris sees some time as a defensive dpecialist.

6-8 middle blocker Brenden Hardt was expected to be Deer Valley’s primary obstacle in the middle. But Hardt was hospitalized from a car accident three weeks ago and may not return this season.

So, if the 11 juniors Skyhawks wanted to equal or exceed last year’s quarterfinal experience, the team’s 11 juniors and sophomore Brady Kuhn had to mature quickly.

"We lost our seniors and we had to step up and fill in their spots," Nguyen said.

Co-coach Eric Palmer said the youngsters are developing into all around players.

"Ben Nguyen is an all-around great player for us. He’s a go-to guy at times and he’s very even keeled. We know we can rely on him," Palmer said. "Nathan Chapparo is a big outside hitter for us. He’s a kid who can really put the ball away for us. They’re our go-to guys on the outside but we’re working on getting everybody involved, making sure we are a balanced team."

The team wants to repeat as Phoenix Region champs and go further in the state tournament. Ulrich-Suss said players took a lot from the 2017 quarterfinal loss to Vail Cienega, the eventual 5A champion.

Deer Valley went to the Beach City Invitational at La Jolla High School last weekend to face some elitelevel competition in preparation for the state tournament. The Skyhawks went 2-3 but all three losses were to San Diego area teams - a different level of high school boys volleyball.

"The level of play over there is going to help us come back to Arizona having played great competition and learn from our competition over there," Palmer said.

Tournament play skews the Skyhawks' overall record to 11-7. In addition to the three losses in San Diego, three more came to 6A powerhouses in early-season tourneys.

He said in addition to Cienega and other always-tough Tucson area teams, Gilbert Higley and Sunrise Mountain are good enough to win 5A.

Deer Valley is the only West Valley school to claim a state boys volleyball title — in 2010.

In another state title push, the Skyhawks will once again rely on their unique sharing of head coaching duties. Palmer is the tactician.

"Coach Palmer does a great job of running our lineup and making sure we have some serving specialists getting in without running out of substitutions. We try to use all of our players to the very best of our ability."

Ulrich-Suss also is a veteran coach with knowledge of plenty of nuances

But her expertise lies in the psychology of volleyball.

"Coach Ulrich-Susa does a great job of mentally preparing the boys. From a physical standpoint, you can see where we can execute but it’s more than just stepping on the court and playing. Volleyball is such a mental game," Palmer said. "She’s done a great job of establishing this program. I feel very fortunate to have coached with her and learned from her."

Deer Valley's Matthew Beard (#12) hits a ball over the net against Centennial March 15 at Centennial High School in Peoria. [Jacob Stanek/West Valley Preps][/caption]