The junior outside hitter had three kills and a block down the stretch to lead Phoenix Xavier over Tempe Corona del Sol, ranked No. 3 in power points. Coppola finished with 14 kills.

Week in review

No team has looked better than Mesa Mountain View — in warm-ups. The Toros are tall, they can jump, they hit the ball hard. But going into Tuesday’s match against unbeaten No. 2 Phoenix Desert Vista, the Toros were a so-so 11-6 overall; 4-5 in region play.

After two games, it looked like they’d be 11-7, but they came back for a 12-25, 19-25, 25-23, 25-19, 15-7 victory.

Lexi Sullivan had 16 kills and 17 digs, Erin Flake had 12 kills, and Amber Kersh had 20 digs. Rachel Tingey had 17 assists and Kaylee Walton had 14. The Toros may be back.

Might as well jump: Gilbert senior Ami Baldwin started jump serving this year when she played for Molten, her club team.

“It helps make me play more aggressive,’’ she said, because a jump server is already on the move while a conventional server is ground bound when the point starts.

On Tuesday, Baldwin’s jump serve helped jump start Gilbert against Chandler Hamilton. She had nine aces, including four in a second-game stretch that turned the match around.

Most teams have only one or two jump servers. Baldwin thinks players are reluctant to experiment with the difficult technique.

Looking ahead

Tourney time: Gilbert Highland is the site of this weekend’s 15th annual Hawks Invitational. No. 1 Phoenix Mountain Pointe also plays at No. 2 Desert Vista on Thursday.

Contact Tom Gibbons: (480) 898-5904 (Ext. 1) or tribvball@yahoo.com