Fortune favored the Braves on Tuesday.
In a roller coaster ride of a Region 1A volleyball match, fourth-seeded Britton-Hecla outlasted the fifth-seeded Redfield Pheasants in four sets, winning by set scores of 25-20, 19-25, 25-18 and 26-24 at the Roncalli Gym.
And not just any set scores, but a myriad of long, loud, intense points befitting a postseason match.
“It’s regions,” said Britton-Hecla senior Abigail Lee. “You lose, you’re out. I think we came into it with a really good mindset. We prepared really hard for this game. We had a really good group of people who were really determined and worked really hard this season.”
While the Braves walked away with the overall win, it was Redfield that landed the early blow, particularly in the opening two sets. The Pheasants led 4-0 to begin the first and 5-1 to start the second.
“I’m really proud of how we fought,” said Redfield coach Morgan Schultz. “That game was quite the roller coaster. Up and down. We had a couple gaps that we had to close and I thought we did a good job. I think if we could have stayed more confident in ourselves and controlled on our side it maybe would have went the other way, but I’m proud of us for fighting.”
The Pheasants made that early lead pay off in the second set, and nearly forced the match into a fifth set after putting together a number of rallies in the fourth. One of those rallies, a 4-1 Pheasant run that tied the set at 20, ended in an improbable kill from senior Kinley Smith, who was still sitting on the floor when the ball ricocheted off teammate Hayden Gall for the second touch.
“I’m not sure (how it happened),” Smith said. “I fell down and I saw the ball still in the air after Hayden touched it and I knew that was close to the end of the set. You have to fight for every point, so I jumped up and tipped it over and somehow it landed. I don’t know how.”
Redfield eventually worked its way to a set point, forcing the Braves to call their final timeout.
Lee said the message in that timeout was simple: keep swinging.
“We have to be aggressive no matter what,” Lee said. “You’re not going to win a tough game like this if you’re playing scared and not swinging.”
Britton-Hecla coach Jenna Peters echoed that statement.
“Just stay aggressive. We talk about it, we practice it every day, 20-20. We play down, we push to come back. The recurring theme for us is just stay aggressive, don’t let down. Have confidence. Keep pushing, don’t get scared, just keep playing our game. And they’ve come a long way since the beginning of the season.”
Karlie Zuehlke erased Redfield’s set point with a kill before Lee and Daynika Zuehlke teamed up for a block to give Britton-Hecla a match point.
Lee then ended the set and match with her 11th kill of the night.
“We knew the last time we played (Redfield), we were down a couple of our setters, but we also know the last few games we have played have been the best games we’ve played all year,” Peters said.
Karlie Zuehlke led the way for Britton-Hecla with 14 kills. Daynika Zuehlke added 13, and Lee finished with 11 for the Braves. Jaelee Grupe notched 25 assists, 8 kills, 19 digs and a pair of blocks, as well.
Britton-Hecla moves on to face top-seeded Groton Thursday for a chance to advance to the SoDak 16.
“We know what we’re getting into,” Peters said. “They beat us in three the last time we played them, but I also think there’s a reason we play the game. My girls are playing the best they’ve played all year, so if we’re going to play them, I’d rather play them now.”
Redfield’s Gall led all players with 16 kills. Charlie Jungwirth, Brynn Giblin and Smith all finished with eight kills apiece. Redfield ended its season at 10-18.
“I think we saw a lot of improvements,” Schultz said. “One of our goals was to win more games than we won last year, and we surpassed that. … I think we made a lot of improvements in ourselves, in the program and we’re happy with the changes that the girls were able to adapt to.”
“I’m really excited to see what they do in future years,” Smith said. “I think this was a turning point this season. It just felt a little different, so I’m excited to see what they do next year.”
Serving: Redfield 64-67 2 aces (Layla Hardie 19-20 2 aces); Britton-Hecla 6 aces (Maddi Micko 3).
Hitting: Redfield 52 kills (Hayden Gall 16, Charlie Jungwirth 8, Brynn Giblin 8, Kinley Smith 8); Britton-Hecla 56 kills (Karlie Zuehlke 14, Daynika Zuehlke 13, Abigail Lee 11).
Setting: Redfield 172-173 48 assists (Hardie 87-88 26 assists, Gall 71-71 21 assists); Britton-Hecla 48 assists (Jaelee Grupe 25, Airiana Buer 15).
Digs: Redfield 106 (Katryn Evans 31, Gall 14, Jungwirth 14); Britton-Hecla 104 (Ava Tevedal 26, Grupe 19, D. Zuehlke 19).
Blocks: Redfield 2 solo, 6 assisted (Giblin 2 assisted, Smith 1 solo 1 assisted, Ceci Suchor 2 assisted); Britton-Hecla 3 solo, 2 assisted (Lee 2 solo 1 assisted).
Records: Redfield 10-17 ; Britton-Hecla 14-12.
