Volleyball: Rivals Battle for Positioning

Volleyball the week of Monday, October 3 had rivals battling for league positioning. The big-ticket match was in the TRC, where league undefeated teams, former often AA play-off foes, Caledonia and Chatfield, did battle. 

Size Propels Warriors Past Gophers in TRC Showdown

It was the biggest TRC match to date (and precursor to a huge football game). Caledonia (6-0, 11-8) and Chatfield (8-0, 22-1) played for the out-right control of the Three Rivers Conference.  There is an out-heard adage that “you can’t teach size.” The Warriors played six girls listed at 5’10” or above, Chatfield just one. Said length particularly in the blocking game was a deciding factor in the match. Game one’s theme was Caledonia ahead, Chatfield rallying. The Warriors thrice built leads, only for Chatfield to pull even thrice. With it tied 21-21, Caledonia got kills from Logan Koepke and Sienna Augedahl, and a Gopher hitting error, to lead 24-21. Chatfield staved off two set points, but fell on a Koepke kill, 25-23. Game two was the Gophers best set. They annulled an early 9-6 deficit with a 11-2 run to lead 16-11. Chatfield knotted things 1-1 with a 25-20 win. Game three was tied at 14-14. But Kennedy Hansen had a pair of aces in a 3-0 Warrior run. They went ahead 17-14. Chatfield closed to down 17-16, but Caledonia ended on an 8-1 run, including Jovial King serving the last five points. Cal went ahead 2-1 via a 25-17 win. Game four saw Caledonia built a good lead, 17-11. Via a 6-0 run, five points in a Harper Goldsmith serving session, the Gophers rallied to tie the set 17-17. But Caledonia scored the next three points (20-17). They then never led by less than two. A Koepke kill ended the game, 25-21, and the match, 3-1 (25-23, 20-25, 25-17, 25-21). The Warriors finished the night with five ace and 19 assisted blocks! Chatfield had nine assisted blocks by contrast. All six of the Warriors “tall”

girls were in on at least two. Koepke (14 kills, 17 digs, 20-20 serving, 2 total blks), Paige Klug (11 kills, 13 digs, 4 total blks), and Liv Myhre (9 kills, 4 total blks) led the way offensively.  Augedahl (5 kills, eight total blks) was Ms. Block. King (41 assists, 7 digs, 5 aces, 3 total blks) set the table. Aubrie Klug (15 digs) played the back-line. Braelyn Lange (4 kills, 3 total blks), Hansen (4 aces), and Emme Kittleson (7 digs) helped. Chatfield was led by their shorter big hitters 5’8” Jaelyn LaPlante (17 kills, 14 digs) and 5’7” Trindy Barkeim (14 kills, 16-17 serving, 6 aces). Kara Goetzinger (6 kills) chipped in some offense. Goldsmith (38 assists, 10 digs) ran the offense. Cora Bicknese (16 digs) did back-line work helped by Alexis Hinckley (8 digs). Caledonia (7-0, 12-8) took sole possession of the TRC lead over Chatfield (8-1, 22-2) and FC (7-1, 14-7). 

Larks Down Cardinals, Get Help to Guarantee Share of West Title 

It was a battle for control of the SEC-West.  Grand Meadow (7-2, 12-6-2) entered the contest leading the division.  LeRoy-Ostrander (7-3, 9-10) entered in second place.   The visiting Cardinals had their set, but from there GM’s consistency won out.  Lindsay Milks’ L-O team took game one by breaking an 18-all tie with a 5-0 run.  Benita Nolt had two kills and an assisted block in the span.  The Cardinals took the set 25-20.  But

GM was steadier overall the rest of the way.  They broke a 7-7 tie in set two with a 12-2 run, taking the game 25-14.  Game three was tied 14-14, but GM then scored four straight points.  Rebecca Hoffman added five-point service session later, as the Larks prevailed 25-17.  In the fourth game, L-O came back from down 15-9 to tie at 18-18.  But a Kendyl Queensland tip-kill and ace in succession put the Larks back in control.  They prevailed in the set 25-19.  They took the match 3-1 (20-25, 25-14, 25-17, 25-19).   Setter Isabelle Fretty racked up the stats (3 kills, 29 assists, 18 digs, 17-17 serving, 3 aces).  Lauren Queensland (13 kills, 15 digs) led the GM offense on ‘O’.  Sister Kendyl Queensland (6 kills, 19 digs, 18-19 serving, 5 aces) also was strong.  Lexy Foster (7 kills, 7 total blks) and Heidi Weiss (5 kills, 3 total blks) helped.  Sydney Cotten was big in the backrow (22 digs).  L-O was led by senior Jordan Runde, who authored a rare 20-20 game (20 kills, 25 digs).  Nolt was her best accomplice (12 kills, 26 digs, 5 total blks).  Jenna Olson (38 assists, 9 digs) ran the offense.  Maddi Huntley (19 digs) was busy on ‘D’.  Brooke Jasper (3 kills, 13 digs) and Kaylee Huff (16 digs) helped.   The Larks swept the season series.  GM turned around and beat Schaeffer Academy 3-0 (25-8, 25-13, 25-14) behind L-Queensland (7 kills, 11 digs), K-Queensland (5 kills, 7 digs, 15-16 serving, 4 aces), Fretty (3 kills, 14 assists, 6 digs), Cotten (8 digs), and Hoffman (4 kills, 18-18 serving, 3 aces).  L-O lost to Houston in five sets (See SEC Volleyball).  And thus, GM (9-2, 14-6-2) has secured at least a share of the SEC-West division over L-O (7-5, 9-12), as the Larks have three SEC games left, the Cardinals two. 

#8 Lions Hold Off Lanesboro in Four-set Thriller

Trailing Lanesboro 20-16 in the fourth set, #8 in Class A Spring Grove avoided a fifth set by winning nine of the final 11 points to take the match, 3-1 (22-25, 25-22, 25-19, 25-22). They completed a season sweep of the Burros. It was exciting with three 25-22 set scores, but it was an inconsistent evening for both squads. It was a rare occasion in which the team with the most kills and most ace serves did not win the match. The outcome was decided by errors, and the Lions prevailed by making fewer mistakes. Lanesboro outscored SG 56-52 with kills, blocks and ace serves, but the visiting Burros also gave away 15 more error points. One

exception to inconsistency was the Lions’ closing 9-to-2 run with three kills on five attacks plus a pair of ace serves. The Burros had looked best with a great five-kill, two-ace rally that fell just short in the second set. Trailing 22-14, Lanesboro scored eight of the next 10 points to get back within two points at 24-22 before falling by three. Leading SG were Addyson McHugh (15 kills, 2 blocks, 2 aces), Kenadee Gerard (11 kills, 2 aces), Maggie Lile (21 for 21 serving, 2 aces) and Kendal VanMinsel (26 assists, 12 for 12 serving, 2 aces). For Lanesboro, Kaci Ruen (19 kills, 5 aces, 17 digs), Jessie Schreiber (9 kills, 24 digs) and Jensyn Storhoff (5 kills, 10 set assists, 16 digs) did work. Claire Keasling added 19 assists. In set one, it was 22-all before the Burros closed with a kill, an ace serve, and a Lion error. SG was in control of set two at 22-14 until an 8-2 Burro run made it close at the end. Set three was tied at 16 before the Lions closed with a 9-3 run. In set four, Lanesboro looked good with a 20-16 lead until the Lions’ match-clinching 9-2 run. The Lions were then much more efficient, closing the week with a 3-0 (25-11, 25-8, 25-7) road win at Kingsland with stellar performances from Van Minsel (26 assists, 2 kills), Lile (17 for 17 serving, 2 aces, 5 digs), Lydia Solum (10 for 10 serving, 3 aces), Gerard (8 kills), McHugh (5 kills, 2 blocks) and Katelyn Kraus (6 kills). The Knights were mostly defensive, led by Kadence Aarsvold (11 digs), Anika Reiland (10 digs), Chantle Reiland (10 digs), and Kaylin Mensink (9 digs). SG (10-1, 19-3) trails M-C (12-0, 27-2) in the SEC-East ahead of Lanesboro (7-4, 12-12-1).