Brandon Bonaparte is an ASU Cronkite School of Journalism student assigned to cover Horizon Honors for AzPreps365.com

In the practices leading up to Thursday’s match against Coronado, coach Kris Maglunog focused on team-building and collectiveness rather than the outcome of the game.

“The big thing we focused pregame on was not worrying about the results,” Maglunog said.

And when the Eagles switched up their focus, the outcome of the game took care of itself.

Horizon Honors (8-12) quickly dispatched Coronado (1-9) 3-0 in front of their home crowd.

Home woes have haunted the Eagles in previous matches. Horizon Honors had only one set win at home entering Thursday’s matchup.

Whether it was jitters at home or a mental blockage, Maglunog’s message was clear.

“Let’s keep it simple, and not [do] too much over-analyzing,” he said.

The Eagles jumped out to an 18-4 run in the first set and never looked back, taking the first set 25-11.

Horizon Honors continued its dominance in the next two sets, winning 25-16 then 25-10.

Instead of trading frustration during the match, the Eagles traded smiles.

“I feel like we came together. We are having more fun instead of getting mad at each other,” said freshman middle and opposite Jade Collins. “We were actually talking to each other and correcting our mistakes rather than just getting in our own heads.”

After the match, Maglunog looks to build off the same theme.

“We focused on ourselves and doing our job,” Maglunog said. “We need to make them buy into that we believe in each other.”

Although a sweep, the match wasn’t without errors. The Eagles still lacked collaboration and cohesiveness on some points.

“We still have a lot of communication errors,” Rowlee said. “We are all there skill wise, but mentally I think we are on different levels. We are working together and [trying to] not stay frustrated.”

Horizon Honors loose play benefited its psyche during the match. But at times, the Eagles may have not been pressing enough.

“There are times where we got a little too comfortable,” Maglunog said.

Despite the room for improvement, Horizon Honors looks ahead to new beginnings.

“We have something to prove,” said Rowlee. “We have the mindset, ‘Hey, we need to keep this going.’”

Maglunog left his team with one more message before the lights dimmed.

With only half of the season left, Maglunog preached legacy to his senior Eagles.

“What do they want to leave behind as seniors,” he said.