PREP VOLLEYBALL: TEAMS FIND FAMILIAR FACES FAR FROM HOME.

Byline: Lee Barnathan Staff Writer

What's 239 miles between rivals?

The Canyon and Highland boys' volleyball teams have played this season, with Highland winning 3-2. They got another shot at each other Monday during pool play in the Las Vegas tournament.

The players and coaches had mixed feelings about the rematch. It seemed odd to travel to Las Vegas to meet again; after all, the point of such a tournament is to face unfamiliar teams. On the other hand, the Canyon players welcomed the opportunity to beat Highland.

Also, Highland middle blocker Trent Sorenson wanted a shot at Canyon because of something Cougars' coach Dave Gutierrez said after the team's first match.

Gutierrez said he wasn't impressed with Sorenson, a 6-foot-7 middle blocker bound for Brigham Young next season. Sorenson wanted to change that perception.

--On pools: Jones also regrets that Highland isn't in the pool of Clovis West, one of the Central Section powers. Valencia played Clovis West on Monday and coach Kevin Kornegay welcomed the challenge. Mojave and Montgomery (Nev.) also are in the Vikings' pool.

--Slumping Alo, Rising Borja: Canyon outside hitter Jesse Alo, one of the area's hardest hitters, has lost some power in his swing. In his past two Foothill League matches, against Valencia and Hart, Alo's production and confidence were down.

Against Valencia, Alo wasn't set high, and Valencia was quick enough to get the block up. He was reduced to dinking and tipping his way to 22 kills, only occasionally making a hard hit that wowed the crowd.

``I was in a slump,'' he said. ``For most of (the match), I hit to the block all day. I didn't figure it out.''

Gutierrez said Alo has lost power because he's trying too hard to crush the ball rather than fully extend his arm on the swing, which is the key to power.

Against Hart, Alo wasn't even the team's kill leader. Marcos Borja, a 6-2 senior outside hitter, was set more than Alo and made the most of it with a team-high 22 kills.

--Schedule catches up: Many thought Hart's 6-0 nonleague record was misleading because the Indians played a weak schedule. Coach Tom Haight agreed that Littlerock, Palmdale, Hoover, Hueneme, L.A. Baptist and Antelope Valley wouldn't adequately prepare the Indians for the Foothill League.

``We played a pushover schedule,'' he said.

Sure enough, Hart finds itself in last place in the league standings at 0-3. Only David Adams has been a consistent hitter, often from the back row.

``Our lack of experience shows through,'' Haight said. ``We're not up to that level of competition mentally.''

Next year, Haight promises the schedule will be tougher. His wish list includes Upland, Marmonte League schools such as Simi Valley and Thousand Oaks and Mission League schools Notre Dame, Alemany and Harvard-Westlake.

Haight has yet to meet with athletic director Linda Peckham to schedule these teams.