Milbank didn’t play like a six seed.

The Bulldogs, who, until recently, were sitting in the No. 2 spot in the Region 1A standings, dropped all the way to No. 6 by the end of the regular season.

They took that to heart and rolled to a 3-1 victory over third-seeded Sisseton Tuesday night at Roncalli Gym. Milbank won by set scores of 25-14, 25-18, 15-25 and 25-11.

“I really didn’t think we deserved the six seed,” said Milbank senior Siera Wenzl. “I knew we could play a lot better than that.”

And if the final score is the measuring standard, then mission accomplished for the Bulldogs.

Milbank, which gave up a healthy dose of height at the net to Sisseton, countered with a change of defensive strategy, choosing to go defensive with one player on the block and five in coverage.

“We gave up a blocker,” said Milbank coach Nancy Hoeke. “You’re going to give up something, so being able to cover the court was definitely helpful to us.”

That strategy certainly played out in the early going, as the Bulldogs were able to keep the taller Redmen at bay, particularly sisters Krista and Saylor Langager.

“I know we’ve got a good defense behind us,” said Milbank’s Claire Snaza, who was tasked with putting up the single block. “I think changing it to one blocker and five (defenders), if I didn’t get it, they would.”

While the defense was more passive, Milbank’s offense was definitely aggressive, which, anchored by Snaza and Wenzl, was enough to put Sisseton on its heels throughout the night.

“I knew we had to kill the ball,” Wenzl said. “Pushing was not an option, because we know they would just set up and hit it back at us, so we might as well swing at them and see what happens.”

And swing they did. Milbank pulled away from a 17-13 lead in the first to win 25-14 and was in control nearly from the start of the second, cruising to victory after opening up a 19-11 lead.

Still, Sisseton did not leave quietly. Spurred by the Langagers and junior outside hitter Elliot Hortness, the Redmen jumped out to an 11-2 lead and never really looked back in the third set.

But that respite, dominant as it was, was brief.

“We just had to focus more and communicate more on who’s getting the ball and where to go on defense,” Snaza said.

Milbank jumped from a 6-3 deficit to a 16-6 lead despite Sisseton burning both of its timeouts in that span. The Redmen never recovered, and Snaza closed out the night with her 15th kill of the match.

“That was something we struggled with all year,” said Sisseton coach Deliah Lehrke. “When we got behind, especially if we got down five or so points, we had a hard time sometimes overcoming that.”

Lehrke noted that the Redmen will graduate six seniors from this year’s squad that went 14-12 on the season.

“We had high expectations and high hopes coming into tonight, so it does sting a little bit,” she said.

In addition to Snaza’s 15 kills, the Bulldogs got 11 kills from Wenzl, and 10 each from Isabella Anderson and Avery Schuneman.

Milbank’s win sets up a rematch with second-seeded Aberdeen Roncalli on Thursday with a berth in the SoDak 16 on the line.

“We’re better than a six seed, and if that’s what the girls need to say to motivate them, so be it,” Hoeke said. “They wanted to show they were better than a six seed. Playing against Roncalli, it’s going to take a little more than that, and believing that you’re better and going up there and playing with them. It’s going to be hard to put the ball away. (The Cavaliers) play scrappy defense, so just that mentality of keep going and not giving up on things.”

Sisseton stats not available

Serving: Milbank (Ella Sandvig 3 aces, Siera Wenzl 2).

Hitting: Milbank (Claire Snaza 15 kills, Wenzl 11, Isabella Anderson 10, Avery Schuneman 10).

Setting: Milbank (Rylee Scoular 23 assists, Addisyn Krause 18).

Digs: Milbank (Krause 19, Sandvig 17, Wenzl 15).

Blocks: Milbank (Snaza 2).

Records: Milbank 14-15; Sisseton 14-13.