Vikings volleyball sinks Purple Hornets in district opener
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BARAGA -- What do you do when your volleyball season is on the line and the conference’s MVP is out with a strained knee? It was a question that Baraga Vikings coach Corey Pietila had to confront on Monday as her senior standout Elisa Delene hurt herself last week in the school’s powder-puff football game.
"I needed people to step up and play some different roles, and they did," said Pietila. "This was definitely a team win."
Monday’s game was the third time the Vikings and the L’Anse Purple Hornets had faced each other this season. This, however, was a playoff game, specifically a District 98 quarterfinal match. The season was on the line, and like the other two matches, Baraga came out on top with scores of 25-23, 25-11, 20-25, and 25-17.
The Vikings and Purple Hornets came out swinging in the opening set and knotted at six thanks to a kill by L'Anse's Kwynn Voskhul. The Purple Hornets then took a 9-7 lead with Iris Derocher on the line.
L'Anse led by as many as four at 15-11 before the Vikings sailed in and tied it at 19, 20 and 21. They then pushed ahead to a first-set win.
In the second set, the Baraga girls dispatched their opponent with greater efficiency. An early 7-5 lead morphed into a 13-7 lead with Adrianna Kyllonen on the line for the Vikings. The Vikings went on to post 12 more points and keep the Purple Hornets to just four more for the set win, putting pressure on the Purple Hornets to answer before their season came to an end.
"Hats off to Aybri Sorensen," said Pietila. "She earned the defensive player of the game on the right side, not her usual spot."
The third set was L’Anse’s best as they avoided another sweep against their rival. Their 25-20 win included ties at five, six, eight and nine. They led by as many as four before Baraga came back to tie it at 19 with Mya Hendrickson posting some strong serves for the Vikings.
However, some equally strong serves by L’Anse’s Sylvia Allen put the team up 23-20 en route to the eventual win.
But momentum did not follow the Purple Hornets into the fourth set. They opened to a 10-4 deficit and could never catch up. Big swings came from Baraga’s eighth-grader Annika Rinkinen, who earned the offensive-player of the game from her coach. This one ended with a 25-17 match-point win for Baraga.
L’Anse coach Mckenna Monticello highlighted her girls’ third-set win as a big moral victory for her squad.
"The improvements these girls have made has been exponential," she said. "For not winning a set in the opening week of the season, to winning a set against a very good team, has made me very proud of these girls. They have fought to get better all season."
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The Vikings will stay at home and host the Lake Linden-Hubbell Lakes Wednesday at 6 p.m.