Minneota captures Eastview title
Minneota continues to show why it's among the elite teams in the state, sweeping five opponents en route to capturing the Eastview Volleyball Invitational title this past weekend.
Minneota, which improved to 26-1 with five victories at the tournament that featured teams from all three classes, upended Eastview 25-21, 25-22 in the championship. “This weekend was a great tournament,” said Coach Hayley Fruin.
“It was exactly what we needed right before playoffs start. It was also nice to play some new teams and see some tough competition.”
In the semifinals, Minneota topped Shakopee, ranked No. 8 in Class 3A, 25-23, 25-23. “We were down five points for most of the second set against Shakopee,” said Fruin.
“But the girls never backed down and came back to win."
“That set really showed our competitiveness, heart and confidence in one another. We hadn't had a tight set for a while, so it was great to see how the girls stuck together and battled back.”
Hard-hitting Lydia Sussner amassed 58 kills in the tournament for the Class A top-ranked Vikings.
“As usual, Lydia frustrates the other team by not only putting the ball away, but her discipline in blocking, too,” said Fruin. But the entire team played solid as it has all season.
“Overall, we had a great tournament,” Fruin noted.
“Every kid stood out for a different reason and that's fun to see. It's nice that it's always someone new contributing each match. That makes us hard to defend".
Natalee Rolbiecki had 24 kills and Morgan Hennen added 12. “Natalee and Morgan had some nice kills for us, especially at crucial times,” Fruin said.
“Sydney (Larson) has really been strong the last few weeks and mixing up her shots well. Morgan Kockelman spread the offense around and accumulated 127 assists on the day.
“Morgan is one of the most disciplined setter. She plays defense, gets to the ball and a does a great job finding the hot hand.”
The Vikings' defense also stood out in the five matches.
“Abby (Hennen) serve-received very well for us and gets us going in the back row. Lizzy (Gillingham) played well defensively, too. And Ellie Pesch continues to be one of our most consistent defenders as well.”
Tournament scores (Pool play)
Minneota def. Robbinsdale Armstrong 25-18, 25-14
Minneota def. Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton 25-10, 25-10
Minneota def. Waconia 25-9, 25-17 (Semifinals)
Minneota def. Shakopee 25-23, 25-23 (Championship)
Minneota def. Eastview 25-21, 25-22
KILLS: Lydia Sussner 58, Natalee Rolbiecki 24, Morgan Hennen 12
SERVING (No., good, aces): Abby Hennen 35-33-1, Lizzy Gillingham 54-51-4, Morgan Kockelman 37-37-5
DIGS: Abby Hennen 94, Lizzy Gillingham 46, Morgan Hennen 35, Morgan Kockelman 34
BLOCKS: Sussmner 14, Sydney Larson 4, Rolbiecki 2, Gillingham 1
ASSISTS: Kockelman 127