Vikings 2nd in 'A' Showcase
Minneota finished second in the Class A Showcase Volleyball Tournament this past weekend.
The Vikings, ranked No. 2 in Class A, lost a close match to No. 1 Mayer Lutheran in the final. Mayer Lutheran prevailed 22-25, 25-14, 15-12.
"Mayer has a few very solid rotations," said junior Ireland Stassen, who had 43 kills, 66 assists, 35 digs and 5 blocks. "We needed to take advantage of when they were not in those and also when they were. We need to know where their key hitters are at all times."
Minneota defeated Legacy Christian 28-26, 25-15 and Fillmore Central 25-15, 25-18 on Friday, and then topped BGMR 25-9, 25-13 and Canby 25-14, 23-25, 15-11 on Saturday before facing Mayer Lutheran.
"Overall, we played well," said Stassen. "We just need to show up each and every match and play to our level."
Natalee Rolbiecki delivered 64 kills and 52 digs for Minneota in the tournament. Abby Frie had 26 kills and seven blocks. McKenna Yost chalked up 69 assists. McKenzie Tolk led with 68 digs, while Lyzah Sussner had five ace serves.
The Vikings are enjoying a full schedule this year after having last season reduced with no state tournament due to the pandemic.
"It is very nice being able to play everyone, and not having to wear a mask is great," Stassen said. "Also, we get to go to some tournaments and play some bigger schools. When we play those schools, we are able to find our strengths and weaknesses for the future."
Minneota statistics
SERVING (good-att-aces): McKenzie Tolk 46-47-2, McKenna Yost 49-50-1, Ella Johnson 31-33-0, Natalee Rolbiecki 39-39-0, Ireland Stassen 39-42-3, Lyzah Sussner 50-51-5
SETTING (assists): Yost 69. Stassen 66
HITTING (kills): Rolbiecki 64, Stassen 43, Abby Frie 26, Yost 7, Johnson 5, Emma Bottelberghe 8
BLOCKS: Frie 7, Stassen 5, Rolbiecki 3, Johnson 2, Yost 1
DIGS: Tolk 68, Rolbiecki 52, Sussner 35, Stassen 35, Yost 30
Result Tuesday, Sept. 28
Minneota 3, Lakeview 0
The Vikings improved to 16-3 this season and 7-0 in the Canden Conference with another dominating performance.
Six players recorded kills, led by Natalee Roilbiecki with 11. Abby Frie notched eight kills, Ireland Stassen five, Emma Bottelberghe 4, Ella Johnson 2, and Kennedi Jurrens with one.
McKenna Yost had 14 assists and Stassen 11. Rolbiecki also had three ace serves and Johnson added two. Yost had 10 digs and McKenzie Tolk was next with seven. Rolbiecki and Lyzah Sussner had six digs apiece.
The Vikings host Yellow Medicine East tonight (Sept. 30) for Homecoming.
Team Scores
Minneota.............................................................25 25 25
Lakeview..............................................................10 11 5
Minneota Statistics
SERVING (good-att-aces): McKenzie Tolk 4-4-0, Natalee Rolbiecki 22-22-3, Lyzah Sussner 16-16-1, Ireland Stassen 2-3-0, Ella Johnson 19-19-2, McKenna Yost 6-7-1, Megan Krog 1-1-1, Lyssa Kremin 1-1-0
SETTING (assists): Yost 14, Stassen 11
HITTING (kills): Rolbiecki 11, Frie 8, Stassen 5, Emma Bottelberghe 4, Johnson 2, Kennedi Jurrens 1
BLOCKS: Johnson 2, Rolbiecki 1, Elivia Faris 1
DIGS: Yost 10, Tolk 7, Rolbiecki 6, Sussner 6, Stassen 3, Bottelberghe 2, Johnson 1 Faris 1
Result Thursday, Sept. 23
Minneota 3, Dawson-Boyd 0
Seven players notched at least one kill and five players served an ace as the Vikings showcased their depth to win their sixth straight Camden Conference match.
Natalee Rolbiecki and Ella Johnson led with seven kills apiece, while Ireland Stassen and Abby Frie had five each, Emma Bottelberghe four, and Lyssa Kremin and Megan Krog one apiece.
Rolbiecki also aced seven of her 21 errorless serves. Stassen and Johnson had two aces each.
Yost had 18 assists and Stassen added 10. McKenzie Tolk notched 6 digs.
Team Scores
Minneota.............................................................25 25 25
Dawson-Boyd........................................................8 8 13
Minneota Statistics
SERVING (good-att-aces): McKenzie Tolk 10-10-1, Natalee Rolbiecki 21-21-7, Lyzah Sussner 5-5-1, Ireland Stassen 19-19-2, Ella Johnson 4-4-2, McKenna Yost 11-11-0, Elivia Faris 2-3-0
SETTING (assists): McKenna Yost 18, Stassen 10
HITTING (kills): Rolbiecki 7, Johnson 7, Stassen 5, Frie 5, Emma Bottelberghe 4, Lyssa Kremin 1, Megan Krog 1
BLOCKS: Frie 2, Johnson 1, Stassen 1
DIGS: Tolk 16, Rolbiecki 8, Yost 5, Sussner 2, Stassen 2, Faris 1