Aberdeen Central made sure there would be no fifth set needed this time.

The Golden Eagles scored nine unanswered points midway through the fourth set on the way to a 25-22, 23-25, 25-21, 25-16 win over Huron in Eastern South Dakota Conference volleyball action Saturday afternoon at Golden Eagles Arena.

“We went to five sets on three away games,” said Central’s Lauryn Burckhard. “We’re like we’re not doing this again, so let’s go and let’s finish.”

Burckhard played a key role in a surge that turned an 10-8 deficit into a 17-10 advantage with three kills, despite wearing a different uniform number than when she started the match.

“I don’t have my elbow pads on. I fell on the floor and my elbow just started bleeding,” Burckhard said, who switched from number 20 to number 24. “They couldn’t get the blood out. … I don’t like the number, but it works.”

Central’s Mya Arampatzis found herself at the service line during the pivotal surge in the match. The junior said she tries not to think about the score when she steps to the line.

“I try really hard not to look at the score when I serve, because sometimes it can mess me up,” Arampatzis said. “I knew that it was really pressured and I had to do what I had to do. My coach was giving me good spots to serve to, so it was really fun.”

Arampatzis does her best to keep the right frame of mind during those pressure-packed moments, knowing what is at stake.

“What really goes through my mind is that every ball counts. You just got to make sure you keep your setter in good play and hitters in good play,” Arampatzis said. “The back row can get kind of tough sometimes with the serve receive, but I try my best and you just have to place the ball right.”

It was a interesting match of scoring surges throughout. After winning the opening set, Central bolted out to a 7-1 lead in the second set, only to come up short in the end. Huron also has a similar run to start the fourth, jumping in front 5-1, but that lead proved to be short lived.

“We talked in the locker room, that I feel like our highs are high and are lows are low, so finding ways to recover quickly when we start to go into a lull is something that we’re just always working on,” said Central coach Jackie Bindenagel, “and that comes with experience as the season goes on, too.”

The Golden Eagles, who have grown to accustomed to close matches to start the season, are still a work in progress, according to Bindenagel.

“We had a different rotation on the court tonight that we did the previous matches,” Bindenagel said, “so we’re still trying to find the right combination of kids.”

One of the mainstays of the program is Burckhard, who racked up a team-leading 21 kills.

“She did a nice job just keeping the ball playable and then she’s starting to recognize more and more when it’s there she can swing really hard or when she has to make a play just to keep the ball going,” Bindenagel said. “She did a nice job on the outside.”

Kenadi Withers contributed 10 kills to the Central total. Alivia Miller had a team-leading four aces and 22 set assists.

“We knew Huron was going to be tough. They’ve got some great kids,” Bindenagel said. “They’re well coached, and thankful we can walk out of here with a win today.”

In the end, Central came up big when it mattered most for a hard-fought win in the team’s home debut.

“It felt really good. Home opener, it was good game, it was was tough game. Huron’s a tough team,” Arampatzis said. “We’re expecting to play a lot of other good teams. I’m excited for the season and how it’s going to look.”

The Golden Eagles, 3-1, host Spearfish on Friday night and Sturgis on Saturday afternoon at Golden Eagles Arena.

Serving: Aberdeen Central 88-96 7 aces (Alivia Miller 16-19 4 aces, Maria Vrooman 13-13 2 aces, Taylin Kleffman 16-17 1 ace).

Hitting: Aberdeen Central 132-151 49 kills (Lauryn Burckhard 45-55 21 kills, Kenadi Withers 23-26 10 kills, Mya Arampatzis 24-26 7 kills, Jaidyn Forsyth 18-21 5 kills).

Setting: Aberdeen Central 138-139 43 assists (Alivia Miller 59-59 22 assists, Camryn Albrecht 46-47 16 assists).

Digs: Aberdeen Central 97 (Kleffman 27, Arampatzis 26, Burckhard 14, Albrecht 9, Miller 9).

Blocks: Aberdeen Central 1 solo 6 assists (Amelia Rife 1 solo 2 assists, Withers 1 assist, Arampatzis 1 assist, Burckhard 1 assist, Karlie Nieman 1 assist).

Records: Huron 2-4; Aberdeen Central 3-1.