Photo by Thomas Brock

ALDEN – Serving again was the key in a Lyle/Pacelli volleyball victory Thursday in the quarterfinals of the Section 1A, West Sub-Section tourney.

Friday, October 29, 1999

ALDEN – Serving again was the key in a Lyle/Pacelli volleyball victory Thursday in the quarterfinals of the Section 1A, West Sub-Section tourney.

The Lions defeated the Glenville-Emmons Wolverines 15-6, 15-7, 15-8. It was the 20th victory of the season for L/P.

The Lions served well and the Wolverines were woeful.

"We had 12 service errors," Glenville coach Craig Rayman said. "I can’t remember a three-game match where we have done that in years. For the year, we did a pretty good job with a 91 percent rate."

Amy Bickler, Nicole Emiliusen, Melissa Ehret, and senior Laura Nelson were the top servers for L/P. Bickler was a perfect 14-of-14, Emiliusen a perfect 16-of-16 with two aces and 12 service points. Ehret had five aces and Nelson four. Even when L/P ran out of substitutions – a player can sub only three times per game – the players who hadn’t served all night did the job. Kassie Baldner scored an ace on her first serve of the night in the third game and Joan Sheedy also hit a couple of good serves.

"I am real comfortable when we run out of entries," L/P co-coach Norm Blaser said. "I think it is an advantage to us. Kassie and Joan do a good job in the back court and practice serving every day. They are both very comfortable with what they have to do."

L/P went up 6-4 in Game One before Emiliusen’s first chance to serve. The Lions then reeled off five straight points on her serve with Sheedy getting a big kill and 5-foot, 2-inch gymnast Amy Bickler challenging the Glenville big blockers by going up above the net with a kill of her own.

L/P added only two more points to the score and Glenville one through the next five servers before Emiliusen scored the last two point of the game, one on an ace.

Game Two was tied at seven when Ehret toed the service line. L/P then reeled off six points with her at the helm. Ehret had one ace in the stretch, Baldner had a kill and sophomore Laura Nelson had an ace block. L/P scored the final two points with Bickler, the next server in the rotation, serving the game out with an ace.

Both teams had some troubles in Game Three with a few miscues leading to a slow scoring game. L/P fell behind early, 4-1, but inched ahead by two at 10-8. Baldner then belted her one ace serve of the match to make it 11-8. It stayed that way through seven servers, Ehret then scored two ace serves to make it 13-8. Then on Bickler’s serve, the sophomore Nelson scored a point on a kill off an over ball and then scored the match-ending point with an ace block.

"The key to the win was that we didn’t worry about the mistakes we made," Blaser said. "I told the girls ‘Don’t worry about a mistake, the team will carry you.’ We were ready physically and emotionally."

"It was a fun match," L/P co-coach Carl Ellis said. "The girls worked hard all week in practice and we were ready for this one."

Baldner led the team in kills with nine. The sophomore Nelson had eight, Ehret and Sheedy six. Nelson (So.) also had three ace blocks. Bickler was the leader in digs with 16 and Ehret had 11.

L/P now takes on the second seeded team in the sub-section, Alden-Conger (15-10) Saturday at 2 p.m. in the Mayo Civic Center Auditorium.

Southland advances

The fourth-seeded Rebels, playing what Coach Barry Brobeck called "our best match all year," downed fifth-seeded Medford 15-11, 15-11, 15-11.

"We put it all together," said Brobeck of his team, now 7-18.

The Rebels served at a 92 percent clip, got 16 blocks as a team and attempted 109 kills in the match. It was the type of all-around effort the team will need to shock No. 1 Faribault Bethlehem Academy on Saturday at noon in the Mayo Civic Center.

The Rebels joined Lyle/Pacelli in the sub-section semifinals behind Amber Ihrke, who had 11 kills and three aces to go with 19-of-19 serving.

Andrea O’Connell contributed five ace blocks and seven kills. Betsy Matheis added seven kills and five aces on 20-of-21 serving.

East Sub-Section

LeRoy-Ostrander advances

The LeRoy-Ostrander Cardinals started slowly, but then caught on fire behind the star power of Nina Bucknell to pull off a four-game win over the Spring Grove Lions, 12-15, 15-6, 15-6, 15-6.

Bucknell was 69-of-79 in sets with 25 set assists. She had nine blocks, nine digs, and 12 kills in the match.

At the beginning of the year first-year Cardinals coach Amy Evans and her team set out some goals. The team said they wanted to make it to State. Evans, a little less optimistic, hoped they could make it above .500 – which they did – and get to Rochester – which they have now accomplished. The Cards are now three match wins in Rochester away from a trip to state.

The first hurdle is Saturday when they meet up with the second seed in the sub-section, Lanesboro, at 6 p.m. in the Mayo Auditorium.

Grand Meadow downed

Seventh-seeded Grand Meadow fell to No. 2 Lanesboro, 15-5, 15-2, 15-11.

Senior Angie Holst led the Superlarks with seven kills.

"They’re so big and pass so well," Coach Dawn Baudoin said of the Burros. "They attack you and don’t let up. They’re always coming at you."

Grand Meadow finished with a 6-15 record for the second straight year.