VIKINGS 2ND IN STATE
Minneota coach Hayley Fruin wasn't stewing or blaming anyone for her team's loss in the Class A State Volleyball championship. Instead, she gave credit to her opponent.
"They brought their 'A' game," she said, matter-of-factly. "We started off a little rocky and you can't do that against a good team like Mayer Lutheran."
Mayer Lutheran lived up to the No. 1 ranking in Class A, sweeping past No. 2 Minneota 25-15, 25-20, 25-18 on Saturday at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul.
The Crusaders (32-2), who last won a state in 2017 by beating Minneota in Fruin's first year as coach, had a definite height advantage on the Vikings, led by 6-2 middle blocker Lilly Wachholz with 17 kills in 35 attacks.
"We knew they were a little taller than us so we tried to wear (Wachholz) out a little bit and take them out of their system," Fruin said. "But they were very aggressive and they kept putting their attacks away."
The Crusaders tried to take All-State and All-Tournament outside hitter Natalee Rolbiecki out of her typical power game with continual double-blocking. Rolbiecki finished with 10 kills in a match-high 46 attacks.
Ireland Stassen did her best to keep the Vikings in the match, delivering 13 kills for the Vikings in 29 attacks, Abby Frie had six kills and Elivia Faris four.
"Faris stepped up in the state tournament," said Fruin. "We were using her for three rotations, but she kept playing better and we used her in six rotations. I love that she goes out there swinging."It was a rare match in which the Vikings could never keep their foot on the accelerator as Mayer Lutheran would thwart any string of points with their blocking schemes.
"We tried to serve aggressively to try and get them out of system," said Fruin. "You just have to give them credit for playing a great match."
Mayer Lutheran's two losses this season were to Southwest Christian and Chaska.
The Crusaders started out strong against Minneota, a telltale sign of things to come. They bolted to a 7-3 lead with Wachholz delivering four kills and the Vikings making three attacks errors attempting to hit around their taller opponent.
The Vikings closed to within points at 12-10 on a kill by Rolbiecki, but they would get no closer in that opening set as the Crusaders scored 13 of the next 18 points.
The Vikings led 5-3 in the second set and were playing better than in the opening set. Burt the Crusaders scored the next four points and never gave up the lead again.
In the third set, the Vikings built a 7-5 lead before Mayer Lutheran rattled off seven unanswered points and rolled to their second state title in four years.
Minneota loses five seniors to graduation: Rolbiecki, Frie, Yost, Tolk and Kennedi Jurrens.
"This senior group were eighth-graders when I started coaching here," said Fruin. "The majority have been moved up for many years so we've created a special bond. I'm so proud of what they've accomplished."
The Vikings were obviously disappointed at not winning a third straight title, but realize that they are a special group.
"We put a lot of pressure on ourselves to win a state championship and we don't realize how big of an accomplishment second place is," said Fruin. "We've battled and beat some of the top teams in the state and have nothing to hang our heads about. All of us coaches are proud of them and I know the whole town is, too. They've made an impact on this program."
Mayer Lutheran 3, Minneota 0
Mayer Lutheran................................25 25 25
Minneota...........................................15 20 18
Minneota Statistics
SERVING (good-att-aces): Lyzah Sussner 6-7-1, McKenzie Tolk 11-11-0, Ireland Stassen 7-8-1, McKenna Yost 10-10-0, Natalee Rolbiecki 12-12-0, Grace Hennen 2-2-0, Dakoda Hennen 1-2-0, Abby Rolbiecki 2-2-0
SETTING (assists): Yost 15, Stassen 13, Tolk 4, Sussner 1, N.Rolbiecki 1, Abby Frie 1
HITTING (good-att-kills): Stassen 26-29-13, Rolbiecki 41-46-10, Frie 14-21-6, Elivia Faris 10-14-4, Emma Bottelberghe 9-10-3, Yost 3-5-1
BLOCKS: Frie 2
DIGS: N.Rolbiecki 26, Sussner 22, Tolk 18, Bottelberghe 1