Last Tuesday, the Garretson Blue Dragons volleyball team invited Flandreau to another face-off after a disappointing defeat in the first round of the Big East Conference the weekend before. Out to reclaim their top-dog status, the Lady Dragons took down the Fliers in three sets in an edge-of-your-seat game, bringing their season to 8-3.
Flandreau came out of the gate soaring, taking the first points of the game without much of a hit back from Garretson. However, the Dragons quickly came back and tied up the game. Flandreau took the lead halfway through the set, and seemed unwilling to let that go as they shot up to 18-21.
Solid plays from the Dragons kept them in the game, however, and they tied the game back up 21-21. The score climbed to 23-23.
When the ball went back to Flandreau at 24-23, it looked like it might be Flandreau's set, but the ball soared past the boundary line and kept Garretson alive. The score matched back up 25-25 as the ball went back to Garretson, who pulled ahead.
A failed dig on Garretson's part tied the game back up 26-26 as the teams fought for the two-point lead they needed to win the set. Flandreau pulled ahead 26-27, but overshot a dig and gave the ball back to the Dragons.
Now 27-27, it was Garretson's game as Kaylin Koch stepped in to serve. The Fliers overshot the kill, bringing the score to 28-27, and a team effort from the Dragons followed by another failed dig by the Fliers gave the Dragons the set at 29-27.
Set two went to the Dragons early as they took the lead. Despite several attempts by the Fliers to tie the score, the Dragons kept pulling ahead for the first seven points. Flandreau grabbed the lead for a short time, but it didn't last long. The teams again battled to pull ahead, tying up and trading off the lead. At 18-18, Garretson reclaimed ownership of the ball and took off, allowing Flandreau only two more points as they ran up the score and ended the set 25-20.
Set three seemed like it was going to be more of the same, as the teams tied up for the first two points. The Dragons watched as Flandreau made several mistakes in a row, allowing the home team to get a 4-point lead, then five, then six points. Now the Dragons had the space to breathe and they took off, bringing the score to 13-4. Flandreau took back the ball and gathered two more points before Garretson again held them off for a bit. The opponents weren't going to go down easily, though, and fought to close the gap, getting to 20 points while holding Garretson to 23. Despite their attempts, the Dragons kept the lead, eventually closing out the game 25-22 thanks to a "lazy" kill by Koch, who bumped the ball over the net when the opponents were expecting a fast-and-hard spike.
"We played very scrappy defense, and our left and right backs made a lot of hustle plays to keep us in system," said Head Coach Lauren Stoterau. "We were also aggressive serving, which kept the pressure on Flandreau and kept them out of system often. Overall, we played aggressive and scrappy and our defense was the highlight of the game."
Player highlights came from Koch, who notched five aces and eleven kills onto her tally; Addison Hove, who had three aces and nineteen assists; and Aleah Wagner with 17 kills, 2 blocks, and 16 digs. Also in fine form were Maci Rotert with 12 assists, Tayler Benson with 19 digs, and singular blocks from Bella Sysa and Charli Peterson.
The Lady Dragons hit the road on Tuesday to take on Dell Rapids (results not available at press time) and will be in Chester tonight (Thursday). Next week, they'll head to Alcester on Tuesday and at home on Thursday, September 28, with Varsity starting at 7:15 p.m.
