Photo by Heather Kleiboer
Volleyball: Strong Programs Post Multiple Wins, Stay Unbeaten
Mabel-Canton, Chatfield, Fillmore Central, and Caledonia could all be termed strong volleyball programs. Each team notched multiple wins, as the 2024 volleyball season had its first full week.
#1 Cougars Down West Powers, Improve to 10-0
Mabel-Canton, ranked #1 in Class A, had three SEC matches, and came up with three sweeps including over the SEC-West’s top two teams from last year, LeRoy-Ostrander and Grand Meadow. The Cards fell 25-11, 25-22, and 25-18. Senior setter Sahara Morken had a rare volleyball five-stat-line (5 kills, 30 assists, 15 digs, 3 aces, 3 ace blocks) in leading the way. Senior teammate Saijal Slafter (5 kills, 3 aces) authored her 1,000th career kill. Slafter is the seventh Cougar with 1,000 kills, a list that also includes her older sister Savannah and teammate Kinley Soiney. Soiney (13 kills, 5 digs) led the Cougars in spikes. Tylar Wenthold (5 kills), Hope Erickson (4 kills, 5 digs), and Kailey Ingvalson (4 kills) aided the M-C cause. Benita Nolt (10 kills, 5 digs, 4 total blks) led the Cardinals. Miranda Nagel (4 kills, 14-14 serving, 3 aces), Meah Stevens (10 assists), and Maria Almaraz-Nolt (11 assists) helped. M-C then took down GM in straight sets, 25-18, 25-19, and 25-19. GM led game one 15-10 only for M-C to end scoring 15 of 18 points. The Cougars got out to big leads in games two (13-4) and three (15-6). Soiney (19 kills, 7 digs, 3 aces) and Morken (35 assists, 8 digs) did the biggest work. Slafter (8 kills, 11 digs), Lydia Vatland (10 digs, 18-19 serving), Ingvalson (5 digs), Ava Jacobsen (5 digs), and Erickson (4 kills) helped. The Larks were led by Hallie Hendrickson (23 assists, 5 digs) and Haylie Paul (5 kills, 17 digs). Lauren Queensland (4 kills, 13 digs), Cheyenne Bakken (12 digs), Gracie Foster (6 kills, 5 digs), Kendall Jack (6 kills), and Rylee Schaufler (8 digs) helped. M-C then had zero problem at Schaeffer Academy. The Lions scored 19 points total including five in the first two sets in a 3-0 sweep (25-1, 25-4, 25-14). Morken (23 assists, 6 digs, 19-19 serving, 4 aces), Soiney (11 kills, 4 aces), and 7th grader Braylee Stortz (8 kills) led the way. Ella Halvorson (7 kills), Lauren Burke (7 digs), Ingvalson (4 kills), and Slafter (4 kills) helped. M-C improved to 3-0 in the SEC, 10-0 overall.
#2 Chatfield Posts Two TRC Wins, Has Opener Moved
Chatfield volleyball, the defending TRC champs and #2 ranked team in Class AA, might have posted a 3-0 week but a rare game-suspension ended that possibility. As it were, Kristi Rindels’ high-octane Gophers took down Cotter and PEM to begin their conference season with two wins. The Gophers handled the Ramblers in four sets, getting off to a 2-0 start (25-16, 25-18, 26-28, 25-21). Chatfield performed the rare feat of getting three hitters to double digit kills. Jaelyn LaPlante led the way with 20 on 48.8 hitting while adding 6 digs. Trindy Barkeim (15 kills, 8 digs) and Cora Bicknese (12 kills, 12 digs) also had nice nights. The trio combined for 47 of the Gophers’ 54 kills. Setter Harper Goldsmith (4 kills, 43 assists, 5 digs, 3 aces) and libero Hannah Tweten (25 digs, 3 aces) also did big work. At PEM, the Bulldogs were felled much easier, 3-0 (25-16, 25-9, 25-13). LaPlante (16 kills, 11 digs, 3 total blks) had a double-double while Goldsmith (6 kills, 29 assists, 8 digs) and Barkeim (8 kills, 6 digs, 17-18 serving, 5 aces) stuffed the stat-sheet. Bicknese (7 kills, 8 digs), Tweten (13 digs), and Kylin Schroeder (4 kills, 3 total blks) helped. Chatfield began the week facing Cannon Falls in a rematch of last year’s 1AA semifinal. The Gophers were up 1-0 (25-16) and ahead 18-8 in game two when the match was called per a wet floor from humidity. It was re-scheduled to September 16. Chatfield is 2-0 in the TRC, 2-0 overall.
Warriors Reload With TRC Wins Over R-P, St. Charles
Defending 1AA champion Caledonia played two league games and posted two wins on the week. At Rushford-Peterson, the teams split the first two sets (Cal 25-17, R-P 25-22) before the Warriors romped in set three (25-6). The Trojans tried for a five-setter but the Warriors took the fourth game in extra volleyball (26-24) for the 3-1 win. Liv Myhre, a 6’2” senior, had 24 kills, four total blocks, and three aces to lead the way. Aubrie Klug (14 kills, team-best 20 digs) and Sienna Augedahl (11 kills) also got to double-digit spikes. The trio had 49 of Cal’s 54 kills. Avery Augedahl racked up 25 assists while adding 15 digs. Lauren Goetzinger (17 digs) and Elsa Blum (11 digs) gave the Warriors four girls in double figures in that category. Lindsey Hoiness (11 kills, 14 digs, 10-10 serving), Torryn Schneider (7 kills, 22 digs, 13-13 serving), and Kayla Magin (19 assists, 14 digs) did the biggest work for R-P. Avree Connaughty (9 assists, 13-13 serving, 4 aces), Addison Drinkall (13 digs), Ava Helgemoe (5 kills), and Nevaeh Happel (4 kills) helped. R-P had six girls serve flawlessly, Schneider, Connaughty, and Drinkall (all 13 for 13), Hoiness and Kenna Gudmunson (each 10 for 10), and Magin (8 of 8). The team was 70 for 73 with six aces. But Caledonia spent more time behind the service line going 88 of 97 with 11 aces. The Warriors out-killed R-P 54 to 32. Dan Reinhart’s group then went through St. Charles in straight sets, 25-11, 25-15, 25-13. Seventeen Warriors saw action. Myhre (13 kills) led the way, as nine Warriors registered a kill. A-Augedahl (23 assists, 8 digs), Klug (4 kills, 5 digs), Blum (6 digs), and S-Augedahl (4 kills) helped. The Warriors improved to 2-0 in the TRC, 3-0 overall.
Falcons Post Two TRC Wins to Start 3-0
Last year’s section 1A runner-up Fillmore Central easily handled two TRC foes. The Falcons took down St. Charles (25-18, 25-8, 25-14) and La Crescent-Hokah (25-21, 25-15, 25-18) each in straight sets. Verus the Saints, All-TRC holdovers Aubrey Daniels (17 assists, 9 digs, 17-17 serving, 3 aces) and Kyla Hellickson (15 digs, 4 aces) did big work helped by newcomer Lauren Dahly’s nice all-around game (5 kills, 13 assists, 6 digs, 3 aces). Annika Mensink (10 kills) led FC in spikes with Izzy Nagel (7 kills, 5 digs), Katelyn Scheevel (8 kills), and Ella Dahly (3 kills, 10 digs) helping. Hosting the Lancers, Hellickson (16 digs, 23-27 serving, 5 aces, 5 assists) and Daniels (7 kills, 15 assists, 12 digs) again led the way. The freshman Scheevel had a team-high 10 kills. L-Dahly (5 kills, 5 digs), Mensink (7 kills), Nagel (5 kills), E-Dahly (4 kills, 10 digs), and Lily Miller (6 digs) made it a team effort. Travis Malley’s Falcons are 2-0 in the TRC, 3-0 overall ahead of a big match-up with Chatfield.
Southeast Conference Volleyball (8/27 & 8-29)
Kingsland 0, Lanesboro 3 > 25-9, 25-8, 25-19 (L: Jensyn Storhoff 12 assists, 5 aces; Taylor Hanson 8 kills; Ellie Howard 11 digs; Ava Rein 8 digs; Sari Rein 4 kills; Hailey Erickson 4 aces. K: Jill Moore 15 digs; Kaelynn Howard 4 kills, 6 digs)
Glenville-Emmons 0, Houston 3 > 25-15, 25-21, 25-18 (H: Emily Botcher 13 kills, 6 digs; Jorja Meyer 7 kills; Jaden Woodard 8 kills; Averie Evanson 6 kills; Olivia Yohe 25 assists, 3 aces)
LeRoy-Ostrander 1, Southland 3 > 26-24, 13-25, 16-25, 12-25 (L-O: Benita Nolt 10 kills, 12 digs, 3 total blks; Addie Harn 10 digs; Meah Stevens 15 assists; Brooke Jasper 6 kills, 13 digs; Maria Almaraz-Nolt 8 assists; Tessa Lewison 8 digs; Kaci McKenzie 18-19 serving, 3 aces; Madi Stern 10-11 serving, 4 aces. Cardinals > 0-3 in SEC, 0-3 overall)
Spring Grove 3, Houston 0 > 25-18, 25-14, 25-14 (SG: Sydney Holland 15 digs, 14-14 serving, 3 aces; Emerson Ingvalson 5 kills, 17-17 serving; Izabel Kauffmann 11-13 serving, 4 aces, 7 digs; Joelle Halverson 8 kills; Jordis Neeley 7 kills; Hailey Normann 4 kills; Kendal VanMinsel 3 kills, 21 assists, 9 digs, 1½ blocks, 2 aces. Hou: E. Botcher 4 kills, 10 digs; O. Yohe 10 assists, 5 digs; Ellasyn Carrier 11 digs; Cadence Koehler 7 digs. The Lions served 14 aces with eight errors, Hou three aces with eight errors. Lions are 1-0, 1-0. Hurricanes are 1-1, 1-1)
Kingsland 0, Grand Meadow 3 > 25-11, 25-12, 25-17 (GM: H. Hendrickson 19 assists, 6 digs, 19-20 serving, 4 aces; C. Bakken 18 digs, 13-13 serving, 6 aces; L. Queensland 5 kills, 6 digs; Rylee Schaufler 6 kills; Haylie Paul 6 digs, 3 aces. K: P. Robinson 19 digs; Kalyn Stier 5 kills; K. Howard 7 digs; Vaira Merkel 5 digs; Macie Rasmussen 4 assists, 7 digs. Larks > 1-1 in the SEC, 3-3 overall. Knights > 1-2 in the SEC and overall)
Three Rivers Conference Volleyball (8/29)
Rushford-Peterson 2, Lewiston-Altura 3 > 25-19, 25-27, 22-25, 25-20, 6-15 (R-P: T. Schneider 10 kills, 24 digs, 17-17 serving; L. Hoiness 13 kills, 16 digs, 3 aces; A. Drinkall 21 digs; A. Connaughty 14 assists, 6 digs; K. Magin 13 assists, 11 digs; A. Helgemoe 5 kills. Trojans > 0-2 in the TRC, 0-3 overall)
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