Volleyball ends season in NSIC tournament
The Vikings wrapped up their volleyball season at the NSIC conference tournament on Saturday, Nov. 12, falling 3-0 to the St. Cloud State Huskies.
Despite the Vikings taking an early five-point lead in the first set and keeping the momentum, the Huskies rallied to win the first set 25-21.
The Vikings also took an early lead in set two, but the Huskies came back to take the second set and used that momentum to secure the third, shutting down the Vikings.
“Our conference is so tough, and we knew none of the matchups were going to be easy,” senior Piper Asche said. “We had high goals going into the tournament and definitely proved ourselves after Friday night. It’s unfortunate we fell short on Saturday, and it still hurts, but we have a lot to be proud of this season.”
Though losing in the semifinals, the Vikings started the tournament with a hard-fought 3-2 upset win over the Wayne State Wildcats.
Both teams traded points through the entire first set until an error let the Wildcats score the 25th point to take set one.
Coming back strong, the Vikings secured the second set with a kill from Asche.
After trading wins in sets three and four, the Vikings held a steady advantage in the fifth set and stayed in the game to secure the win with a final kill by Asche.
“We were all so overwhelmed with excitement and happiness,” senior Avery Thorson said. “It was so fun. It is a memory I will remember forever, and I’m so grateful I got to experience that with my best friends.”
The Vikings ended the season with a 20-10 overall record and three NSIC First Team All-Conference honorees in Thorson and seniors Maddy Guetter and Erika Bute. Bute was also named the NSIC Libero of the Year.
While the 2022 fall season is over for the Vikings volleyball, head coach Jennifer Jacobs said the team will continue to train in the spring and focus on each individual player’s skills before the fall season picks up again.
“Overall the season was a good one,” Jacobs said. “Could we have done better, sure, but I’m glad we have made the postseason the past three years and now we will look to work on going deeper into the playoffs.”
