Lions Take Set From #4 M-C, Cougars Win in Four
For all intents and purposes, the SEC-East title was on the line as #4 in Class Mabel-Canton (9-0, 25-2) hosted Spring Grove (9-1, 15-5). The Lions have been about the only SEC team to test M-C over the years. That said, the Cougars whipped through SG 3-0 (25-22, 25-15, 25-18) on September 5. But like last year, the Lions got closer the second time around. SG came out strong in the first set. Blocking and serving were keys. SG trailed just once, 0-1. They had four early blocks to set a tone and lead 12-7. M-C got within one at 14-13, but could not fully comeback. SG rejoiced in taking the first set 25-20. They had the four blocks and two (Izabel Kaufmann) aces in the set, M-C one block and zero aces. But the Cougars regrouped and ripped to a 9-2 lead in game two. SG had six more rejections. Kelsey Morken’s group closed to within one twice at 17-16 and 21-20. But the Cougars scored four of the final five points. They took the set 25-21, evening the match 1-1. A that point, M-C junior Kinley Soiney had 17 kills! M-C then buzz-sawed game three, jumping out 12-1. Sahara Morken had a four-ace, nine-point service session. The Cougars breezed to a 25-9 win. M-C then ripped early in game four as well, jumping out 7-2. But SG resiliently recovered, tying the game at 9-9. They then took the lead at 10-9. It was their only lead after set one. M-C responded by going 4-0 to lead 13-10. SG then got within one six times. Jordis Neeley had three kills for SG late. The Lions were within one at 21-20 and 22-21. But M-C then scored three straight including a Soiney/Morken combo-block for a 24-21 lead. SG staved off two match points. A Neeley ace made it 24-23. But the Cougars then got a good pass, set, and Soiney hammered a shot. Emerson Ingvalson dug it up, but sent it back over, right to Soiney who hammered down the match-securing kill. In front of a packed crowd in Mabel, Lonnie Morken’s Cougars prevailed 3-1 (20-25, 25-21, 25-9, 25-23). Soiney (season-high 29 kills, .440 hitting, season-high 9 total blocks) and Morken (2 kills, 44 assists, 20 digs, 4 total blks, 23-25 serving, 4 aces) proved their All-State statuses. Saijal Slafter (13 kills, 9 digs) was their best help. Hope Erickson (5 kills, 3 total blocks), Lydia Vatland (13 digs), and Ava Jacobsen (12 digs) also did work. SG was led by Neeley (14 kills), Kendal VanMinsel (33 assists, 14 digs, 3 total blks), Joelle Halverson (12 kills, 10 digs), Hailey Normann (7 kills, 8 total blocks), Sydney Holland (19 digs), and Ingvalson (15 digs). SG had 13 blocks. M-C tallied nine. M-C out-killed SG 55 to 41 hitting 21% to 13%. SG served 74 of 79 (94%). Kaufmann (17 of 17, 2 aces), Holland (12 of 12), and VanMinsel (14 of 14) did so perfectly. M-C was 84 of 93 (90%). Only Jacobsen did so perfectly (11 of 11). M-C then easily swept Glenville-Emmons 3-0 (25-8, 25-3, 25-9). Morken (25 assists, 7 digs, 20-21 serving, 7 aces) had a big match, as did Soiney (10 kills, 3 total blocks, 6-6 serving, 3 aces). Hope Erickson (6 kills), Tylar Wenthold (5 kills), Kailey Ingvalson (4 kills, 7-7 serving, 3 aces), Vatland (16-16 serving, 3 aces), and Braylee Stortz (4 kills) helped. With three league contests left, the Cougars (11-0, 27-2) lead SG (10-2, 16-6) and Lanesboro (9-2, 14-6) in in the SEC-East.
#2 Gophers Clinch Share of TRC Title, Down #4 Byron, Get to 20 Wins
Chatfield volleyball posted a 6-1 week with multiple accomplishments. By sweeping Rushford-Peterson 25-15, 25-19, 25-19, the Gophers shored up a share of the Three Rivers Conference title. Kristi Rindels’ big five, Harper Goldsmith (33 assists, 12 digs, 6 aces), Cora Bicknese (12 kills, 17 digs), Jaelyn LaPlante (17 kills, 10 digs), Trindy Barkeim (9 kills, 7 digs), and Hannah Tweten (19 digs) did big work. The Trojans were led by Torryn Schneider (6 kills, 14 digs), Lindsey Hoiness (7 kills, 10 digs), and Addison Drinkall (15 digs). Avree Connaughty (11 assists) and Kayla Magin (7 assists, 7 digs) helped. The Gophers are 8-0 in the TRC with two league games left. FC (6-2, 10-11), Caledonia (5-2, 15-5), Cotter (5-2, 12-3), and D-E (5-2, 9-7) then each have two losses. A couple days later, the #2 in Class AA Gophers took on #4 in AAA Byron. The Bears entered having just beaten AA schools Pine Island (13-6) and Caledonia (15-5), 3-1 and 3-2 respectively. But the Gophers rolled. Byron held two leads. Chatfield broke set one open with a 6-0 run to lead 19-12. They prevailed 25-18. In game two, an 8-0 run early gave the Gophers a 14-5 lead. Jaelyn LaPlante served seven of those points including three aces. Serve receive was a bugaboo for the Bears. Chatfield took game two 25-16. Game three was then the most competitive, but only after Chatfield jumped out 13-7 and later 20-12. Byron closed to down 22-19 with a 7-2 run. But the Gophers had all the answers, whether it serving, serve receive and defense, or offense. They posted the impressive sweep (25-18, 25-16, 25-19). The hitting triad of LaPlante (13 kills, 6 digs, 5 aces), Barkeim (14 kills, 8 digs), and Bicknese (8 kills, 9 digs) were a pick-your-poison. Each had a set of five-plus kills. Setter Goldsmith (4 kills, 36 assists, 8 digs) kept her hitters happy whilst tossing out the timely dump-kill. Tweten (16 digs) led the defense. The Gophers had 11 aces, Byron two. Chatfield ended the Bears seven-game win streak. The Gophers then took ninth, per the format, at the Burnsville Twin Cities Challenge. They were one of six teams to go 4-1 or better though. Chatfield beat AAAA Forest Lake 2-1 (17-25, 25-8, 15-11) and A Pine River-Backus 2-0 (25-21, 25-10) while losing to AAAA Rosemount 1-2 (25-11, 16-25, 9-15). The Gophers then beat AAAA White Bear Lake 2-0 (25-21, 25-17) and #9 in AAA Holy Angels 2-1 (12-25, 25-18, 15-12). Chatfield (8-0, 21-4) won its 20th match at the event. They have not lost a non-tourney match (11-0) and all but one (Cotter in the season-opener) have been sweeps.
GM Gets Help, Moves into First in SEC-West
Grand Meadow volleyball’s week was two ho-hum wins in league play. But they got help elsewhere, enabling the Superlarks to move into sole possession of first place in the SEC-West. Matt Rosaaen’s group beat Glenville-Emmons (25-14, 25-11, 25-7) and Schaeffer Academy (25-11, 25-0, 25-12) each by sweep. Setter Hallie Hendrickson had a nice week. Versus the Wolverines, she had 4 kills, 23 assists, 5 digs, and 5 aces (13 of 14 serving). Haylie Paul had a team-best 9 kills. Cheyenne Bakken (6 digs, 12-12 serving, 3 aces), Lauren Queensland (4 kills, 10 digs), Rylee Schaufler (7 kills), and Gracie Foster (5 kills) also did work. Versus the Lions, Hendrickson served all 25 points in set two. The junior had 24 assists, 6 digs, and 11 aces on 32 of 32 serving. Queensland had a team-best 10 kills. Paul added nine. Bakken (7 digs, 6 aces), Foster (6 kills), and Schaufler (5 kills, 5 digs) helped. Southland lost in five sets to Lanesboro. GM (8-3, 11-9) now leads the Rebels (7-4, 7-4) in the division.
Storhoff’s Big Week Helps Burros to 16 Wins
Lanesboro volleyball marched on mostly beating who they should to continue a good season. Frankie Kohn-Nelson’s Burros won a pair of SEC matches to run their league win streak to four. They ceded the first set to one-win Schaeffer Academy but then won out convincingly for the 3-1 win (22-25, 25-14, 25-3, 25-14). Jensyn Storhoff neared a quadruple-double (10 kills, 19 assists, 25 digs, 8 aces) with a huge effort. Ellie Howard added 21 digs and 9 assists. Sari Rein (8 kills) and Hailey Erickson (7 kills, 4 aces) helped. The Burros then took down SEC-West co-leader Southland in five sets, 3-2 (16-25, 25-20, 25-20, 16-25, 15-12). It was Lanesboro’s sixth league match to go three-plus sets and the Burros have won all six. They are 3-0 in five set matches. Storhoff was again huge (28 assists, 29 digs, 6 aces, 4 total blocks). Howard (24 digs), Taylor Hanson (11 kills, 4 total blocks), S-Rein (11 kills, 4 total blocks), and Chloe Miller (8 kills, 3 aces) helped. The Burros got to 16 wins with the victory. The top of the SEC-East is #4 in A Mabel-Canton (11-0, 27-2), Spring Grove (10-2, 16-6), and Lanesboro (9-2, 16-6).
Three Rivers Conference Volleyball (10/1 & 10/3)
Fillmore Central 3, Lewiston-Altura 0 > 25-18, 25-16, 25-20 (FC: Kyla Hellickson 7 kills, 18 digs; Ella Dahly 9 kills, 9 digs; Hannah Vaalemoen 15 assists, 5 digs, 3 aces; Aubrey Daniels 14 assists, 5 digs; Annika Mensink 8 kills; Katelyn Scheevel 5 kills; Lily Miller 13-14 serving, 4 aces; Josie Corson 5 digs, 4 aces. FC had 15 aces. The Falcons (4-2, 8-11) and Cardinals (5-2, 12-6) were part of two-loss log jam with Caledonia (5-2, 14-4), Cotter (4-2, 11-3) and D-E (4-2, 8-7) in the TRC)
Fillmore Central 3, Wabasha-Kellogg 0 > 25-21, 25-10, 25-12 (FC: E. Dahly 15 kills, 5 digs; K. Scheevel 8 kills; K. Hellickson 4 kills, 19 digs; A. Daniels 18 assists, 10 digs; H. Vaalemoen 9 assists; J. Corson 7 digs; Maddie Zwart 4 kills)
PEM 0, Rushford-Peterson 3 > 25-18, 25-18, 25-17 (RP: Avree Connaughty 23 assists, 5 digs; Lindsey Hoiness 12 kills, 9 digs; Torryn Schneider 7 kills, 9 digs, 14-15 serving, 4 aces; A. Drinkall 23 digs; Shelby Tesch 6 kills, 5 total blocks; Kenna Gudmundson 11 digs, 15-15 serving)
Southeast Conference Volleyball (10/1 & 10/3)
Kingsland 0, LeRoy-Ostrander 3 > 25-12, 25-15, 25-16 (LO: M. Stevens 20 assists, 6 digs, 9-9 serving, 5 aces; Benita Nolt 9 kills, 6 digs, 5 aces; Brooke Jasper 11 kills, 5 digs; Kaci McKenzie 7 digs, 18-18 serving, 6 aces. K: Paisley Robinson 19 digs; Aliyah Holland 12 digs; Caisa Kolling 4 kills; Chantle Reiland 3 assists, 5 digs. L-O had 20 aces)
Spring Grove 3, Kingsland 0 > 25-8, 25-9, 25-8 (SG: Emerson Ingvalson 9 kills, 6 digs, 14-14 serving, 5 aces; Joelle Halverson 9 kills, 5 digs; Jordis Neeley/Hailey Normann 7 kills; Katie Klug 21-22 serving, 6 aces; Brinley Middendorf 5 kills; Kendal VanMinsel 28 assists. K: P. Robinson 18 digs; C. Kolling 4 kills, 3 total blocks; C. Reiland 4 digs, 3 aces. The Lions are 10-2 in the SEC, 16-6 overall. Kingsland is 3-8, 5-18)
Houston 3, LeRoy-Ostrander 1 > 13-25, 25-23, 25-23, 25-16 (H: E. Botcher 25 kills; 12 digs; O. Yohe 31 assists, 9 digs; C. Koehler 21 digs; Ellasyn Carrier 14 digs; Averie Evanson 4 kills, 4 total blocks; Jaden Woodard/Jorja Meyer 4 kills. L-O: M. Stevens 32 assists, 11 digs; B. Nolt 13 kills, 8 digs, 4 total blocks; Miranda Nagel 8 kills, 8 digs, 7 aces; Maria Almaraz-Nolt 4 kills, 10 digs; B. Jasper 6 kills, 13 digs; Addie Harn 9 digs. Hurricanes are 4-7 in the SEC, 7-14, overall. Cardinals are 6-5, 9-10)
Non-Conference Volleyball (10/1 – 10/5)
Rushford-Peterson 3, Houston 0 > 25-16, 25-21, 25-16 (R-P: T. Schneider 15 kills, 11 digs; Ava Helgemoe 12 kills; S. Tesch 7 kills; Kayla Magin 24 assists, 8 digs; A. Connaughty 14 assists, 16-16 serving; A. Drinkall 23 digs; L. Hoiness 8 kills, 11 digs. H: C. Koehler 16 digs; E. Botcher 8 kills, 7 digs; O. Yohe 16 assists, 7 digs; E. Carrier 9 digs; J. Woodard 5 kills; J. Meyer 4 kills, 5 digs)
#4 in AA Caledonia 2, #4 in AAA Byron 3 > 19-25, 26-24, 25-18, 25-27, 11-15 (C: L. Myhre 22 kills, 17-17 serving, 3 aces; S. Augedahl 21 kills; A. Augedahl 41 assists; A. Klug 25 digs; Lauren Goetzinger 12 digs; Paisley Lange 9 digs; Elsa Blum 6 kills, 7 digs; Ashlyn Reinhart 7 digs. Caledonia had an eight-match win streak snapped by the 15-7 Bears)
Zumbrota-Mazeppa 0, Caledonia 3 > 25-16, 25-22, 25-23 (C: L. Myhre 25 kills (on .403 hitting); S. Augedahl 12 kills; A. Augedahl 38 assists; A. Klug 15 digs; P. Lange 8 digs, 3 aces; L. Goetzinger 9 digs; E. Blum 5 kills. Warriors > 5-2, 15-5)
Rushford-Peterson 0, Goodhue 3 > 19-25, 18-25, 19-25 (R-P: L. Hoiness 11 kills, 8 digs; T. Schneider 7 kills, 10 digs; A. Helgemoe 4 kills; A. Connaughty 18 assists, 7 digs; A. Drinkall/K. Gudmundson 10 digs. Trojans > 4-4, 8-8)
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