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BLOOMING PRAIRIE – The Blooming Prairie volleyball team and had its young players show a lot of fire in the second game, but it wasn’t enough as they were swept by Medford for the second time this season, falling by scores of 25-14, 25-17, 25-20 in BP Thursday.

The Awesome Blossoms showed a glimpse of their future in that second contest as some underclassmen played well. Sophomores Abby Hefling, who finished with five ace blocks, and Sierra Larson, who had nine ace blocks both picked up their aggression and played strong at the net.

Setting up those two sophomore hitters was freshman Macy Lembke, who had 24 set assists. Lembke was a libero up until this season, but she is quickly learning the nuances of running the offense at the varsity level.

“I’ve worked with (assistant coach) Abby (Wayne) a lot and I’ve worked with the hitters a lot after practice. I’m glad I’m a setter now. I like the feeling of running the court and putting everybody in position. It’s fun,” Lembke said. “I’ve learned a lot and you can’t really get down on yourself.”

Larson came up with a block to tie the second game at 8-8, but BP was never able to take the lead. Medford’s lead was just 20-16 late before the Tigers scored five of the last six points. 

BP senior and Bemidji State University commit Micalyn Trihus collected eight kills and she put high praise on the play of Larson and Hefling.

“I’ve seen their confidence grow so much. I think they came into this season being great players, but they just didn’t know they were,” Trihus said. “Tonight we had more blocks than we had all season and that’s because they’re getting comfortable in their position and they’re doing a great job.”

BP (2-6 overall) hasn’t racked up a lot of wins, but Trihus said it’s exciting to take the court when the Blossoms play with energy.

“Winning and losing definitely affects the mood, but when you’re playing good volleyball and losing, it’s still fun,” Trihus said. “When you’re playing bad volleyball and losing, it’s really not fun. The quality of volleyball makes it fun.”

BP trailed by double digits for much of the first game, but it did pull to within 22-13 on a kill by Emily Miller.

BP led the first game 1-0 to start things off, but Medford (4-3 overall) scored the next seven points to run away with it.

The Blossoms played the match without senior middle hitter Megan Oswald and senior setter Maggie Bruns. Head coach Jennifer Wayne liked the way her team responded to playing shorthanded.

“This was probably our best effort of the season,” Wayne said. “Medford is a good team and I was really pleased with how well everybody played.” 

BP stats: Macy Lembke, 24 assists, 2 digs; 1 ace serve; Micalyn Trihus, 5 digs; 1 ace serve, 8 kills, 2 ace blocks; Sierra Larson, 2 kills, 9 ace blocks, 1 dig; Abby Hefling, 3 kills, 5 ace blocks; Anna Kittelson, 5 kills; 4 ace blocks, 1 dig; Emily Miller, 5 kills; 4 ace blocks, 1 dig