PREP VOLLEYBALL: Tigers sweep Huskies for title

MARSHALL — Building large leads in each of the first two games and then pulling away late to win the third set Saturday night, North champion and top-seeded Marshall Tigers swept South champion and top-seeded Jackson County Central Huskies in the Section 3AA high school volleyball tournament championship match at the R/A Facility on the campus of Southwest Minnesota State University.

Game scores were 25-17, 25-18 and 25-21 as the Tigers, who improve to 26-5 overall and advance to the Class AA state tournament for the sixth consecutive season, are seeking to repeat as champions after winning the title in 2011.

Marshall, which is ranked first in the state polls again this year, earned the top seed and will play Mora (24-7) in the opening round at 5 p.m. Thursday at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul.

Meanwhile, JCC finished the year with a record of 24-6 and a sixth-place state ranking. The Huskies lost a four-game match to Marshall on Sept. 13 and finished second to the Tigers in the Southwest Conference standings.

“First and foremost, we want to extend our congratulations to JCC on another outstanding season,” Marshall head coach Dan Westby said after the match. “We were fortunate enough to defeat the Huskies both times we played them this season, but it certainly wasn’t easy, especially tonight. They have great players and coaches, and really deserve a lot of credit.”

Kenzie Beekman (15 kills), Sydney Griffin (eight kills, 14 digs and 14 set assists), Hannah Bennett (20 digs) and Rachel Sanow (13 set assists) were among the statistical leaders for Marshall, which has just two seniors listed on its roster.

“Marshall has an excellent team, no doubt about it,” JCC head coach Teresa Van Epps said. “We had another great season and knew that we might run into Marshall again in the playoffs. We were ready for it, but we just came up a little bit short.”

Marshall took command right out of the gate in Game 1, scoring four straight points to mount a quick 5-1 lead. Kills by Beekman and Callie Graff helped lift the Tigers.

JCC’s Lydia Brandt smacked a pair of kills from the right side to keep the margin at four (8-4) a bit later, but Marshall extended the gap and led 13-6 behind two kills from Griffin, a tip by Angela Tauer and a tandem block between Beekman and Graff.

Michelle Van Epps, who had earlier made set assists to Sydnee Donnelli and Jasmine Erickson for kills, scored on a tip at the net out of a Huskies’ timeout to briefly put the brakes on the Tigers’ momentum.

However, Marshall stayed in command and took a 17-9 advantage. Beekman hammered a pair of kills from the left side, while Sanow set to Griffin for a kill in the middle to highlight the Tigers’ multi-dimensional attack.

Marshall’s lead grew to 21-11 before JCC rallied with a 6-2 run to pull within two at 23-17. Erickson scored on an ace block and a kill, while Van Epps and Sydney Nyborg teamed up for a tandem block before Kaylee Burmeister pounded a kill on a free ball to spark the Huskies and force a Tigers’ timeout.

Marshall, though, regrouped and scored on a net violation and a left-side kill by Beekman to close out a 25-17 opening victory.

JCC then took its first lead of the night (1-0) to begin Game 2, as Burmeister knocked down a kill from the left side.

But Marshall scored the next four points — two on an ace serve by Tauer and an ace block by Graff — to go up 4-1 and later increased its cushion to 12-5. Beekman and Griffin both smacked a pair of kills to pace the Tigers in that stretch.

Marshall maintained a lead of between six and nine points the rest of the way, securing a 25-18 win with the help of an ace block by Maci Louwagie and a tip by Emma Doyle.

Down 2-0, JCC started strong in Game 3 and took an early 4-0 lead on a service run by Brooke Klontz. Brandt and Nyborg recorded back-to-back tandem blocks, while Donnelli blasted a kill to trigger the Huskies’ fast start.

The Tigers answered with four straight points to tie it, and the rest of the action was a seesaw affair — with JCC holding a slight edge until the middle stages of the game.

Two straight ace serves by Rachel Johnson gave the Huskies an 8-6 lead, and JCC was up 11-8 after Burmeister and Nyborg connected on a tandem block.

Erickson also had a pair of kills off of sets from Van Epps — who scored on another tip at the net, as well — to benefit the Huskies early on.

Marshall, though, assembled an 8-2 surge to take a 16-13 lead — one that it did not relinquish the rest of the way.

JCC was within one (18-17) after an ace serve by Donnelli, but Marshall went on to wrap up a 25-21 victory to complete the sweep.

Burmeister smacked a pair of kills to aid JCC late, but kills from Griffin and Beekman helped Marshall hold on and again repeat as section champions.

JCC’s Lydia Brandt smacked a pair of kills from the right side to keep the margin at four (8-4) a bit later, but Marshall extended the gap and led 13-6 behind two kills from Griffin, a tip by Angela Tauer and a tandem block between Beekman and Graff.

Michelle Van Epps, who had earlier made set assists to Sydnee Donnelli and Jasmine Erickson for kills, scored on a tip at the net out of a Huskies’ timeout to briefly put the brakes on the Tigers’ momentum.

However, Marshall stayed in command and took a 17-9 advantage. Beekman hammered a pair of kills from the left side, while Sanow set to Griffin for a kill in the middle to highlight the Tigers’ multi-dimensional attack.

Marshall’s lead grew to 21-11 before JCC rallied with a 6-2 run to pull within two at 23-17. Erickson scored on an ace block and a kill, while Van Epps and Sydney Nyborg teamed up for a tandem block before Kaylee Burmeister pounded a kill on a free ball to spark the Huskies and force a Tigers’ timeout.

Marshall, though, regrouped and scored on a net violation and a left-side kill by Beekman to close out a 25-17 opening victory.

JCC then took its first lead of the night (1-0) to begin Game 2, as Burmeister knocked down a kill from the left side.

But Marshall scored the next four points — two on an ace serve by Tauer and an ace block by Graff — to go up 4-1 and later increased its cushion to 12-5. Beekman and Griffin both smacked a pair of kills to pace the Tigers in that stretch.

Marshall maintained a lead of between six and nine points the rest of the way, securing a 25-18 win with the help of an ace block by Maci Louwagie and a tip by Emma Doyle.

Down 2-0, JCC started strong in Game 3 and took an early 4-0 lead on a service run by Brooke Klontz. Brandt and Nyborg recorded back-to-back tandem blocks, while Donnelli blasted a kill to trigger the Huskies’ fast start.

The Tigers answered with four straight points to tie it, and the rest of the action was a seesaw affair — with JCC holding a slight edge until the middle stages of the game.

Two straight ace serves by Rachel Johnson gave the Huskies an 8-6 lead, and JCC was up 11-8 after Burmeister and Nyborg connected on a tandem block.

Erickson also had a pair of kills off of sets from Van Epps — who scored on another tip at the net, as well — to benefit the Huskies early on.

Marshall, though, assembled an 8-2 surge to take a 16-13 lead — one that it did not relinquish the rest of the way.

JCC was within one (18-17) after an ace serve by Donnelli, but Marshall went on to wrap up a 25-21 victory to complete the sweep.

Burmeister smacked a pair of kills to aid JCC late, but kills from Griffin and Beekman helped Marshall hold on and again repeat as section champions.

Tags: jackson county central, sports, prep, volleyball