Spring Grove won two volleyball matches after dropping a pair to finish in fifth place at the Goodhue Tournament on Saturday, October 16. It was good preparation for the upcoming playoffs as all four opponents had winning records, similar to that of the Lions, who closed the day at 17-9. Both Losses came against larger Class AA clubs before split-set wins over Class A competition. Medford improved to 16-8 with the opening 2-0 win and would go on to win the tournament championship. Lake City improved to 17-8 with the second-round victory against the Lions. The Grove girls then defeated Hayfield, 2-1, with the Vikings leaving the court at 13-11. The Lions closed with a 2-1 win against Alden-Conger, which slipped to 18-7.
Medford 2, Spring Grove 0 (25-20, 25-19)
The error count was the same for each team in each set. But the Tigers generated the most offense at the net and from the service line. Class AA Medford hit with 20% efficiency to the Lions’ 15%. That resulted in 30 Tigers kills and one block while the Lions scored with 18 kills and 4 blocks. Spring Grove served with strong 95% accuracy with 4 aces (2 errors). But Medford sparkled at 98% with 6 aces and only one error.
Kenadee Gerard scored with 7 kills, an ace block and an ace serve. Addyson McHugh served 9 for 9 with 2 aces and scored with 5 kills and a block assist. Maggie Lile had 15 digs and Rachel Normann 13. Normann had 14 set assists.
Set one was tied at 12-all when the Tigers eased ahead to eventually win by five, 25-20. The Lions never led in set two after falling behind 5-0. Grove would trail by 10 (24-14) before saving five match points.
Lake City 2, Spring Grove 0 (25-18, 25-21)
Lion hitting dipped with a tourney-low 3% efficiency (17 kills, 15 errors), while the Class AA Tigers attacked at 19% with 28 kills (13 errors) along with 4 scoring blocks. Spring Grove served 98% (39 for 40) with one ace, while Lake City servers struggled at 88% with more errors (6) than aces (3). Julia Halverson served 6 for 6 with the lone Lion ace. Lile dug 12 times while McHugh had 9 saves and Normann 7.
The Tigers jumped out to a 5-1 lead and were never caught in the first set (25-18). In set two, Spring Grove scored the first two points on Tiger hitting errors, but Lake City took the lead for good at 8-7 and lead by as many as eight points before winning by four, 25-21.
Spring Grove 2, Hayfield 1 (25-21, 19-25, 15-4)
Spring Grove served 100% (60 for 60) with 3 aces, while Hayfield languished at 88% with more wayward serves (6) than aces (2). At the net, the Vikings created the most attacks and had the most kills, but they also had the most attack errors. Hayfield hit with 7% efficiency (32 kills, 24 errors) while the Lions prevailed at 12% (23 kills, 11 errors).
Eight blocks helped Spring Grove make up for the 9-kill deficit. Solum was in on six blocks (1 solo, 5 assists) and was also the most efficient hitter with 7 kills and no errors. Gerard had another 7 kills along with a solo block and 2 assisted blocks. McHugh served 15 for 15 with 2 aces and Normann 13 for 13 with an ace. Norman set with 14 assists, and Lile supplied 5 assists from the back row. On defense, Lile had 14 digs, McHugh 13, Normann 12 and Halverson 7.
In the deciding third set, the Lions had no errors, while Hayfield had more scoring mistakes (6) than winning plays (4). It was down, up and further down for the Vikings, who were by far the most impressive while taking the second set. The Lions trailed for most of the first set, including a late 20-16 deficit. Then four Viking hitting errors helped Spring Grove catch up at 20-all before an ace served by Normann provided a Lion lead. In that first set, Grove scored nine of the last 10 points.
Spring Grove 2, Alden-Conger 1 (22-25, 25-20, 15-12)
The Lions had two more kills (29-27), three more ace blocks (8-5) and two more ace serves 6-4). But at the end of a long day on the hardwood, it came down to the deciding third set, during which both teams struggled to establish a rhythm. The Knights had three more scoring mistakes than scoring plays, and Spring Grove survived, by three points, 15-12. Alden-Conger started that third set with a 6-1 lead, but the Grove girls rallied with a kill and an ace serve from Gerard plus a Brielle Neeley kill to finally pull even at 7-7. The teams then traded points as the score was tied again at 8, 9, 10 and 11-all. The Lions scored five of the final six points with kills from McHugh and Gerard plus a block by Halverson and Solum. The day ended with an off-target Alden-Conger attack.
Normann aired up 20 assists and Lile 6, while Lile led diggers with 24. Lile, Normann and Gerard each served a pair of aces. McHugh had a team-high 10 kills. The Lions hit with 11% efficiency, Alden-Conger 9%. Grove served at 92% with 8 aces and 5 misfires. The Knights served 93% with 6 aces and 4 errors.
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Spring Grove Volleyball 2021 (17-9,11-2 SEC)
W vs. Southland 3-0
W at Lyle/Pacelli 3-0
W at Schaeffer Academy 3-0
Thur. Sept. 9 Lanesboro, postponed until Oct. 11
Tues. Sept. 14 at Houston, postponed until Oct. 6
W vs. Glenville-Emmons 3-0
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at Waukon Tournament
W vs. Central Elkader 2-0
W vs. Postville 2-0
L vs. Waukon 0-2
W vs. Crestwood 2-0
L vs. Waukon 10-2
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L at Mabel-Canton 0-3
W at Grand Meadow 3-0
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at Dassel-Cokato Tournament
L vs. Melrose 0-2
L vs. Eden Valley-Watkins 0-2
L vs. Dassel-Cokato 0-2
W vs. Kimball 2-0
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W vs. Schaeffer Academy 3-0
W at Lanesboro 3-0
W at Houston 3-0
W vs. Kingsland 3-0
W vs. Lanesboro 3-0
W vs. Houston 3-0
L vs. Mabel-Canton 2-3
at Goodhue Tournament
L vs. Medford 0-2
L vs. Lake City 0-23
W vs. Hayfield 2-1
W vs. Alden-Conger 2-1
Mon. Oct. 18 at LeRoy-Ostrander
B-team Volleyball 2021
14-2 (11-1 SEC)
W vs Southland 2-0 (25-5, 25-13)
W at Lyle/Pacelli 2-0 (25-4, 25-8)
W at Schaefer Academy 2-0 (25-7, 25-8)
W vs. Glenville-Emmons 2-0
L at Mabel-Canton 0-2 (24-26, 22-25)
W at Grand Meadow 2-0 (25-23, 25-12
W vs. Melrose 2-0 (25-18, 25-21)
L vs. Dassel-Cokato 1-2 (25-7, 20-25, 13-15)
W vs. Eden Valley-Watkins 2-0 (25-17, 25-10)
W vs. Rockford 2-0 (25-16, 25-20)
W vs. Schaeffer Academy 2-0 (25-12, 25-4)
W at Lanesboro 2-0 (25-22, 25-14)
W vs. Kingsland 2-0 (25-15, 25-13)
W vs. Lanesboro 2-0 (25-10, 25-14)
W vs. Houston 2-0 (25-5, 25-11)
W vs. Mabel-Canton 2-1 (19-25, 25-22, 18-16)
C-team Volleyball 2021
10-1 (8-0 SEC)
W vs. Southland 2-0 (25-5, 25-13
W vs. Caledonia 2-1
W vs. Grand Meadow 3-0
L vs. Fillmore Central 1-2
W at Mabel-Canton 2-0 (26-24, 25-23)
W at Grand Meadow 2-0 (25-11, 25-22
W at Lanesboro 2-0 (25-9, 25-11)
W vs. Kingsland 2-0 (25-13, 25-17)
W vs. Lanesboro 2-0 (25-8, 25-12)
W vs. Houston 2-0 (25-9, 25-6)
W vs. Mabel-Canton 2-0 (25-7, 25-8)
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