With the quick stroke of a pen and a wide smile, Montezuma-Cortez High School senior Naomi Pinnecoose signed a letter of intent to play volleyball at Colorado Mesa University next season.
The senior’s signing marked the official end of a stellar career at M-CHS, which included two appearances on the Southwest League’s all-conference team and an appearance on the Class 4A all-state team.
During the 2014-15 season, Pinnecoose led the Lady Panthers with 348 kills, 291 digs, 49 aces and 38 blocks in route to being named ‘Player of the Year’ in the Southwest League.
“Naomi was the leader of our team on and off the court,” said M-CHS head coach Andi Pickens. “She always had a great attitude and her play between the lines spoke for itself.”
In signing with CMU, Pinnecoose figures to suit up for what could potentially be one of the top Division Two programs in the nation. The Mavericks finished 29-4 last season won the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference’s regular season and tournament championships and advanced to the NCAA regional finals.
“CMU has a really good volleyball program,” Pinnecoose said. “I’ve been talking to their coach for a while and he’s seen me play club volleyball. Signing to play college volleyball, I finally accomplished one of my goals.”
Asked about her hopes for next season, Pinnecoose said that she plans to play hard and see what happens.
Pickens, a former college volleyball player herself, said that she expects her star pupil to excel at the college level.
“Naomi is really determined and that will allow her to be successful at the college level,” Pickens said. “She knows what she wants and she has the drive to get there.”
As for the advice that Pinnecoose would give to young players in the area who hope to one day follow in her footsteps, the senior offered the following words.
“I would tell them to work hard and not give up,” said Pinnecoose. “Playing college volleyball is not impossible.”