by Scott DCamp
Sports Editor
Northland Community & Technical College upset 15th-ranked Alexandria Technical & Community College 3-1 Wednesday night in an MCAC Northern Division volleyball match in Thief River Falls.
The win was the Pioneers’ sixth straight overall and third in three Northern Division matches.
The 15th-ranked Legends took control early in the first period and early on, it seemed like it might be a short night for the Pioneers. The Pioneers lost the first five points of the opening set and trailed 9-1 before taking a timeout to regroup.
The Pioneers played better down the stretch, but dropped the opening set 25-13. From there, the Pioneers were just a little bit better in each set, winning 25-23 in the second, 26-24 in the third, and 25-22 in the fourth to close out the upset.
“After the first set, the team showed remarkable composure by quickly moving forward,” said Northland Head Coach Kelly Olson. “Our program emphasizes staying present and not dwelling on past mistakes, and the players embraced that mindset tonight. Recognizing that nothing could be done to change the opening set, they chose to refocus and respond. Their ability to put a difficult start behind them, and compete with resilience speaks volumes about the character and determination of this group.”
The Pioneers’ ability to stay in the present helped them build and maintain a small lead in each of the final three sets.
“It was not the cleanest match on either side of the net, but in the second set we focused on slowing the pace and regaining our footing,” Olson said. “Nearly every substitution was used, and the coaching staff is proud of how the players responded to being taken out and reinserted into the match. That can be challenging mentally, but the team embraced the idea that success comes when we work together without concern for individual credit.
“We also recognized that the first set would not define our night—that performance is not who we are. The difference over the final three sets was our ability to treat each point as its own, move forward, and consistently put ourselves in positions to succeed.”
Mackenzie Dahl, 16, and Sierra Westberg, 11, both reached double digits in kills for the Pioneers. Setter Kaydence Augustine finished the match with 33 assists. Dahl and Tess Hoglo led the Pioneers in digs with 14 and 13, respectively.
Pioneers extend winning streak to seven matches
The Pioneers traveled to Ironwood, Mich., on Friday for a late afternoon match against Gogebic Community College. It was the Pioneers’ first road action since the season-opening MCAC Crossover Tournament held Aug. 22-23.
The Pioneers took the opening set 25-23, and the Samsons countered with a 25-18 win in the second set to even the match score at 1-1.
The Pioneers regained the lead with a 25-17 win in the third set, but the Samsons again countered with a 25-15 win to force a fifth set.
The Pioneers came out on top in a back-and-forth fifth set 15-13 to pick up win number seven on the season.
Westberg, Dahl and Augustine recorded double-doubles for the Pioneers. Westberg finished with 19 kills and 18 digs. Dahl had 16 kills and 33 digs, and Augustine had 45 assists and 22 digs. Also reaching double figures in digs were Rylie Fredrickson with 30, and Halle Baldwin and Tessa Hoglo with 12 each.
Up next for the Pioneers is a trip to International Falls on Wednesday to face the Minnesota North College – Rainy River Voyageurs.
Scoring
1 2 3 4 5 T
Alexandria 25 23 24 22 X – 1
Northland 13 25 26 25 X – 3
Alexandria K A SA DG BS BA
Brielle Bitzan 1 24 3 5 0 0
Lilliana Rowe 0 0 1 11 0 0
Jaci Domeier 8 0 0 7 0 0
Eva Eisel 0 0 0 2 0 0
Aspen Gentele 9 0 2 11 3 2
Ella Demars 0 0 0 6 0 0
Emma Madison 13 0 0 12 1 0
Olivia Schmiesing 0 1 0 0 0 0
Ashlyn Kahler 7 0 0 1 1 0
Maddy Stocker 0 15 0 4 0 1
Alexis Nurmi 5 0 0 2 2 4
Totals 43 40 6 61 7 7
Alexandria Hitting
Set Kills Errors Attacks PCT
1 10 3 27 0.259
2 6 6 29 0.0
3 17 3 35 0.4
4 10 9 35 0.029
Northland K A SA DG BS BA
Rylie Fredrickson 2 0 5 9 0 2
Halle Baldwin 0 0 0 6 0 0
Lily Holthusen 0 0 0 0 0 0
McKenzie Dahl 16 1 2 14 0 0
K. Augustine 1 33 3 9 0 0
Sierra Westberg 11 1 2 9 0 2
Tessa Hoglo 4 0 0 13 0 0
Addison Kujawa 5 0 0 0 0 0
Sheynelle Weaver 0 0 0 1 0 0
Totals 39 35 12 61 0 4
Northland Hitting
Set Kills Errors Attacks PCT
1 5 5 24 0.0
2 12 12 48 0.0
3 12 6 34 0.176
4 10 5 33 0.152
Scoring
1 2 3 4 5 T
Northland 25 18 25 15 15 3
Gogebic 23 25 17 25 13 2
Northland K A SA DG BS BA
Rylie Fredrickson 6 1 1 30 0 2
Halle Baldwin 0 0 0 12 0 0
Lily Holthusen 0 0 1 1 0 0
McKenzie Dahl 16 1 1 33 1 1
K. Augustine 1 45 1 22 0 0
Sierra Westberg 19 0 0 18 0 2
Tessa Hoglo 4 0 0 12 0 0
Addison Kujawa 4 0 0 3 0 1
Sheynelle Weaver 3 1 0 1 0 1
Totals 53 48 4 132 1 7
Northland Hitting
Set Kills Errors Attacks PCT
1 12 9 51 0.059
2 8 9 55 -0.018
3 18 7 55 0.200
4 9 4 28 0.179
5 6 5 30 0.033
MCAC North
Division Overall
W L W L
Northland CTC 3 0 7 1
Alexandria Tech 3 1 8 4
Rainy River CC 3 1 6 8
Mesabi Range 3 2 4 9
MNC-Itasca 1 3 1 8
Central Lakes 0 3 1 10
Vermilion CC 0 3 0 10
MCAC South
Division Overall
W L W L
Minnesota West 4 0 14 1
Riverland CC 3 1 6 3
Rochester CTC 2 1 5 6
St. Cloud Tech 2 1 5 8
Ridgewater 1 2 3 5
M State 1 2 2 6
Western Tech 1 3 5 8
Anoka-Ramsey 1 3 2 8
Century College 1 3 2 8
NJCAA Division III Coaches Poll
Overall Pts
1. Dallas-Eastfield 13-1 (8) 90
2. Sandhills 15-0 84
3. MN West 14-1 78
4. College of DuPage 10-6 72
5. Dallas-North Lake 5-4 66
6. Caldwell 6-5 60
7. Butler County 9-0 54
8. Northampton 8-0 48
9. Dallas-Brookhaven 6-7 42
10. Hudson Valley 8-0 36
11. Finger Lakes 8-3 30
12. Rochester 5-6 24
13. Delta 4-3 18
14. St. Cloud 5-8 11
15. Northland 7-1 4