MILBANK – Aberdeen Roncalli kept its perfect conference record intact with a 3-1 Northeast Conference volleyball victory over Milbank Area Tuesday night, winning by set scores of 25-23, 23-25, 25-18 and 25-20.

The Cavaliers, now 17-5 and 8-0 in league play, fended off the Bulldogs at every turn, fighting their way to victory behind familiar strengths at the service line and the defensive back line.

Roncalli racked up 13 aces on the night, including three each from Ava Hanson and Faith Danielson, but it was the defensive effort that drew attention from head coach Mandy Smid.

“We struggled early to get energy going,” Smid said, “but rallied behind Camryn (Bain’s) 1,000th dig.”

That milestone for the Cavalier senior came amidst 34 total digs on the night. McKenna O’Keefe added 18, and Roncalli notched 95 digs as a team.

“It’s been a tough week of matches and the girls did a nice job of fighting through some adversity, starting down in score most of the night,” Smid said.

Offensively, Hanson led the way for Roncalli with 13 kills and a pair of blocks. Jaidyn Feickert joined in with another dozen kills, while Faith Danielson handed out 22 assists.

Rachel Schulte and Skyler Skoog paced the Bulldogs with 18 and 15 kills, respectively. Schulte also added 15 assists and 27 digs to her line. Ella Sandvig had 33 digs and a service ace.

Roncalli will round out the regular season with a home match next Monday, hosting Deuel in another NEC contest. Milbank Area will be back on the court next Tuesday hosting Webster.

Serving: Aberdeen Roncalli 79-89 13 aces (Ava Hanson 10-12 3 aces, Faith Danielson 13-15 3 aces); Milbank Area (Shaylee Schuchard 15-16 1 ace, Ella Sandvig 19-19 1 ace).

Hitting: Aberdeen Roncalli 154-180 48 kills (Hanson 31-42 13 kills, Jaidyn Feickert 40-46 12 kills); Milbank Area (Rachel Schulte 44-51 18 kills, Skyler Skoog 41-44 15 kills).

Setting: Aberdeen Roncalli 40 assists (Danielson 22); Milbank Area (Addisyn Krause 47-47 19 assists, Schulte 45-47 15 assists).

Digs: Aberdeen Roncalli 95 (Camryn Bain 34, McKenna O’Keefe 18); Milbank Area (Sandvig 33, Schulte 27).

Blocks: Aberdeen Roncalli 1 solo 4 assists (Hanson 2 assists, Maddie Huber 2 assists); Milbank Area (Claire Snaza 1 solo 2 assists, Schuchard 2 assists).

Records: Aberdeen Roncalli 17-5; Milbank Area 18-11.