by Scott DCamp
Sports Editor
Fifth-seeded Thief River Falls was eliminated from the Section 8AA volleyball tournament with a three-set road loss to fourth-seeded Perham Friday night.
The host Yellowjackets defeated the Prowlers on three occasions during the regular season. The Prowlers lost in four sets to the Yellowjackets in the season-opener on Aug. 29.
In that first outing, all four sets were decided by two points (26-24, 25-23, 24-26, 25-23). The subsequent meetings weren’t quite as close, with the Yellowjackets winning a pair of matches by 2-0 scores at the Hawley Tournament ((25-22, 25-21 and 25-10, 25-18). Still, there was hope for an upset from the Prowlers’ senior-laden squad that had won five straight matches heading into Friday night’s quarterfinal match against the Yellowjackets.
The Prowlers were unable to consistently get to their offense and the Yellowjackets took advantage with a 25-16, 25-18, 25-18 win.
“Our game against Perham didn’t go as planned obviously,” said Thief River Falls Head Coach Hannah Lund. “We came out a little flat and just couldn’t get things turned out, especially offensively which hurt us a lot. We sent too many free balls which allowed Perham to stay in system and run their offense well.”
The Prowlers end the season with a 16-13 record that includes a season sweep over section opponents Park Rapids Area and Roseau, and a five-set win over Fosston.
“The girls put a lot of work in physically as well as mentally this season,” Lund said. “There were games lost that should have been won due to inconsistent play or energy. They started to figure it out towards the end of the season but came up short against Perham.”
Seniors Sophia Kraemer, Ali Yuska, Olivia Tougas, Carlie Rogalla, Kendra Mehrkens, Seraphim Johnson, Julia Rude and Becca Harbott concluded their high school volleyball careers with the loss to the Yellowjackets.
“We’re going to miss each and every senior,” Lund said. “Many played multiple years on varsity and it was so fun watching them develop. As a whole, they were a very fun and welcoming group.
“As a program, we’re graduating basically our whole rotation from this year. We will have a lot of work to do this summer, but we have a great group of underclassman that are ready to put in the work.”
Perham 3, Thief River Falls 0
• Scores – Perham def. TRF 25-16, 25-18, 25-18.
Section 8AA
• Quarterfinals, Friday, Oct. 27 – Hawley 3, Park Rapids Area 1; Perham 3, Thief River Falls 0; East Grand Forks 3, Pelican Rapids 1; at Wadena-Deer Creek 3, Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton 0.
• Semifinals, Thursday, Nov. Perham at Hawley; Wadena-Deer Creek at East Grand Forks.
• Championship, Saturday, Nov. 4 TBD.
Section 8A
• East Subsection quarterfinals, Thursday, Oct. 26 – Ada-Borup-West 3, Win-E-Mac 0; Fertile-Beltrami 3, Clearbrook-Gonvick 0; Blackduck 3, Bagley 1; Fosston 3, Northome/Kelliher 0.
• West Subsection quarterfinals, Thursday, Oct. 26 – Kittson County Central 3, Goodridge/Grygla 0; Stephen-Argyle 3, Sacred Heart 2; Northern Freeze 3, Lake of the Woods 2; Badger/Greenbush-Middle River 3, Red Lake Falls 0.
• Saturday, Oct. 27 – Subsection semifinals – Ada-Borup-West 3, Fertile-Beltrami 0; Fosston 3, Blackduck 0; Kittson County Central 3, Stephen-Argyle 1; Badger/Greenbush-Middle River 3, Northern Freeze 0.
• Tuesday, Oct. 31 – Section semifinals at Crookston High School – West highest seed vs. East lowest seed 6 p.m.; East highest seed vs. West lowest seed 30 minutes after first match – Kittson County Central vs. Fosston; Ada-Borup-West vs. Kittson County Central.