Playoff Out & About: 5AAA Blaine/Spring Lake Park

#6 posting 10.29.2008
your daily dose of girls volleyball news & information

5AAA PLAYOFFS
Semifinals
BLAINE bengals 3, SPRING LAKE PARK panthers 0
(25-12, 25-17, 25-10)

#1 seed Blaine dispatched #5 seed Spring Lake Park with a margin of 36 points. In almost any category the Bengals had an advantage. Blaine took the run category 12-3. The Bengals led at all key break points. SLP only led 1-0 and 2-1 early in the first set. Two Bengals had double digit kills---Ari Mewhorter and Brittney Barren. Blaine has won the section two straight years in a row.

This was a sandwich match with Blaine dominating in the opening and closing sets, with SLP competitive in the second frame. After the first three balls SLP led 2-1. That was their high water mark. Runs were the name of the game with Blaine picking up four in the first set. Blaine led 8-3 when SLP took their first time out. The final run came on Barren's serve at 17-7. It didn't stop Barren. She added five more points, with three straight aces to go along with the one before the time out to put up 9 points in the first stanza. Blaine led 24-8 when SLP had their only run in the first set. However two of the points were on Blaine hitting errors. Tracie Gillund ended the first set with a kill.

Blaine led 8-7 when the Bengals put together an 8-2 run to lead 16-9. A Panther time out in that sequence eventually turned the tide back with a 6-1 SLP run. That forced the only time out by Blaine with the score 17-15 Blaine. After the time out Mehworter knocked down two straight kills and everything was right in the Blaine universe. Blaine outscored SLP 8-2 to finish the second set. Mewhorter had 8 kills in this stanza.

This set took on characteristics of the first. Blaine had nine straight FBSO preventing any points on SLP serves. Blaine was spreading the ball around a little more than in the first contests I watched. Again Barren rocketed some serves forcing a SLP time out at 9-4. Barren put four more on the board to make it 12-4. SLP only earned two points the final frame. The night closed with five points off Mewhorter's serve.

Blaine will face Osseo on Saturday at Coon Rapids for the right to go to state.


you can see the entire Blaine vs Spring Lake Park photo gallery at kevinanderson.photostockplus.com

rotation, player, position, aces-blocks-kills--totals
BLAINE
1. Mackenzie Suda, 2009, S 0-0-2----2
2. Ashley Kvistberg, 2009, OH 1-0-7----8
3. Amber Marciniak, 2009, L 0-0-0----0
3fr: Tracie Gillund, 2009, MH 0-2-6----8
4. Kelli Elhardt, 2010, RH 0-0-3----3
4br: Reiley Dahlberg, 2009, DS 0-0-0----0
5. Arriel Mewhorter, 2009, 3-0-13----16
6. Brittney Barren, 6-4-10----20
totals: 10-4-41----55 points, 20 points on SLP errors

SPRING LAKE PARK
1. Melissa Backes, 2010, OH 0-0-2----2
2. Marissa Evans, 2010, S 0-0-1----1
3. Stephanie Wurzer, 2010, MH 1-0-2----3
4. Melissa Widman, 2010, OH 0-0-3----3
5. Natalee Yeazle, 2009, RH 0-1-7----8
6. Alyssa Luedtke, 2010, L 0-0-0----0
6fr. Jenna Lee, 2010, MH 0-0-0----0
6fr: Katie Norlien, 2009, MH 0-0-0----0
totals: 1-1-15----17 points, 22 points on Blaine errors

TRENCH PLAYER
Brittney Barren--solid at the serving line, with the blocking game and putting down kills.

BY THE NUMBERS
team, fbso/fbso attempts; fbso %; points, % earned; % allowed
Blaine 21/29-.724; 75; .733; .564
Spring Lake Park 11/29-.379; 39; .436 .513
Runs 3+: Blaine 12, SLP 3
Longest string: Blaine 7, SLP 4
Missed Serves: SLP 4, Blaine 3
Time Out %: Blaine 1/1-1.000; SLP 1/5-.200

ROTATIONS
BLAINE
1. Suda 8-8 .500
2. Kvistberg 16-7 .696
3. Marciniak 11-9 .550
4. Elhardt 9-6 .600
5. Mewhorter 13-5 .722
6. Barren 18-4 .818
totals: 75-39 .659

SPRING LAKE PARK
1. Backes 7-14 .333
2. Evans 10-11 .476
3. Wurzer 8-13 .381
4. Widman 6-11 .353
5. Yeazle 4-15 .211
6. Luedkte 4-11 .267
totals: 39-75 .342

RACE TO:
Set: 5 10 15 20 25
set 1 B B B B B
set 2 B B B B B
set 3 B B B B B

BIGGEST LEAD
Team 1 2 3
Blaine 16 8 15
SLP 1 0 0

next up: tomorrow morning

Out & About: Champlin Park/Spring Lake Park

#5 posting 10.6.2008
your daily dose of girls volleyball news & information

CHAMPLIN PARK rebels 3,
SPRING LAKE PARK panthers 1
(21-25, 28-26, 25-23, 25-23)

In a roller coaster-- give and take-- white knuckle ride, Champlin Park out did Spring Lake Park in a 5AAA section match up 3-1. Both teams would build leads only to see them wither away. SLP led by 8 in set two and lost. CP led in the same set 24-20 with four set points, and didn't get the job done. CP had two more set points at 25 and 26, but failed to close out. Set four CP led by 10 at 21-11. The Rebels withstood a furious SLP rally to win. In each of the CP wins the margin was a mere two points. SLP earned 69 points on the night compared to 59 for CP. It was the errors that did in SLP. They led that category 40-28. CP is (at best guess) 7-10. SLP is 16-9.

Big runs led off set one. SLP opened with five straight points. CP had their own run of 7 points after two side outs. Breann Padden had three aces in that segment. Both teams traded runs of four after that. Both teams struggled with the first ball side out game. CP led 18-16. A three point SLP run put the Panthers up 19-18. CP took their first time out and got the ball back with a side out kill by Reanna Nelson. Nelson added another kill for point 20. A missed Padden serve and a Nelson hitting error put SLP back in front 21-20 and forced another CP time out. The Rebs got a side out kill, but SLP finished with their fourth run of set one with four straight points.

SLP again started off with a run of four. The same patterns that developed in set one manifested themselves in set two. CP responded with their own run of three. SLP had a six point run to go up 12-4 and seemingly in the driver's seat. However CP was able to squeeze off points on their next four serves. CP racked up another 7 point run as they took a 14-13 lead. Of those seven points, five were on SLP errors. CP broke free from a 19 all tie with a 5-1 run to be on the verge of a win at 24-20. Natalee Yeazle got the side out, and SLP kept holding off the Rebels. Melissa Backes put down a kill to tie the contest at 24. It was CP's turn to stem the tide as Nelson got the momentum stopping kill. Both teams traded four side outs. The string stopped on a four contact ball and then Halie Chelstrom finished the marathon with a kill.

Set three had the mystery point. Sometime prior to 15-10 (or 14-11 in my calculations) a point was flipped. I have no idea when the transaction took place. CP led 16-10 and looked like they were in the driver's seat. However SLP got back into the thick of it with a four point run which forced a Rebel time out. SLP was able to tie the contest up at 22 after a Yeazle kill. Abby Johnston put CP back on top to stay. Yeazle had a hitting error and then a side out kill to make it 24-23. CP finished set three just in time with a Abby Ostrander kill.

CP put together four runs while holding SLP to one as the Rebels held what looked like a commanding lead 21-11. At that stage SLP went on a 12-3 run. CP gave away 7 points on errors. CP tried to stem the flow with time outs at 22-17 and 24-22, but the blood kept flowing. Jessica Axen served up an ace to make it 24-23 CP. The final point came on a passing error into the net to finish the night. The thrill ride came to an abrupt halt.

you can see the entire Champlin Park vs Spring Lake Park photo gallery at kevinanderson.photostockplus.com

rotation, player, position, aces-blocks-kills--totals
CHAMPLIN PARK
1. Chelsey Schmidt, 2009, S 0-0-2-----2
1fr Rebecca Moore, 2009, MH 0-0-2----2
2. Abby Ostrander, 2009, OH 1-0-7-----8
3. Breann Padden, 2010, RH 4-2-8-----14
4. Kat Chelstrom, 2009, S 0-0-0------0
4fr: Halie Chelstrom, 2010, MB 0-0-10-----10
5. Kelsey Reed, 2010, L 1-0-0------1
5fr: Reanna Nelson, 2009, OH 0-0-12-----12
6. Brandi Freitas, 2009, DS 3-0-0------3
6fr: Abby Johnston, 2009, OH 0-2-5-----7
totals: 9-4-46----59 points, 40 points on SLP errors

SPRING LAKE PARK
SLP used the below order in sets 1-3. in set 4 the first rotation was rotation 4 (Widman) with no change in the rest of the order.
1. Melissa Backes, 2010, OH 5-0-15----20
2. Marissa Evans, 2010, S 2-0.5-3----5.5
2. Jessica Axen, 2009, S 1-0-0-----1
3. Stephanie Wurzer, 2010, MH 1-1-8----10
4. Melissa Widman, 2010, OH 0-1.5-12----13.5
5. Natalee Yeazle, 2009, RH 0-0.5-15----15.5
6. Alyssa Luedtke, 2010, L 0-0-0----0
6fr Jennifer Lee, 2010, MH 0-0-1-----1
6fr Katie Norlien, 2009, MH 0-1.5-1----2.5
totals: 9-5-55-----69 points, 28 points on CP errors

TRENCH PLAYER
Breann Padden

BY THE NUMBERS
team, fbso/fbso attempts; fbso %; points, % earned; % allowed
Champlin Park 17/44-.386;
Spring Lake Park 18/43-.419;
Runs 3+: SLP 14, CP 13
Longest string: CP 7, SLP 6
Missed Serves: CP 8, SLP 8
Time Out %: CP 4/8-.500; SLP 1/4-.250

ROTATIONS
CHAMPLIN PARK
1. Schmidt 17-19 .472
2. Ostrander 14-14 .500
3. Padden 19-26 .422
4. K Chelstrom 16-18 .471
5. Reed/Nelson 20-14 .588
6. Freitas 12-7 .632
totals: 98-98 .500

SPRING LAKE PARK
1. Backes 19-14 .575
2. Evans 14-23 .378
3. Wurzer 23-18 .561
4. Widman 19-20 .487
5. Yeazle 12-11 .522
6. Luedtke 11-12 .478
totals: 98-98 .500

RACE TO:
Set: 5 10 15 20 25
set 1 S S C C S
set 2 S S S C C
set 3 C C C C C
set 4 C C C C C

BIGGEST LEAD
Team: 1 2 3 4
Champlin Park 3 4 6 10
Spring Lake Park 5 8 3 1

Next up: tomorrow morning

Out & About: Spring Lake Park/Cambridge-Isanti

#5 posting 8.92.2007
your daily dose of girls volleyball news & information

SPRING LAKE PARK panthers 3,
CAMBRIDGE-ISANTI bluejackets 0
(25-12, 25-13, 25-6)

Spring Lake Park had no problems in a sweep over Cambridge-Isanti. The Panthers also swept the Bluejackets last season. SLP's Alyssa Johnson, who has made a verbal to SW MN State, led the way with nine kills and five blocks.

The first game was the closest in that it was tied at 8. The game really broke open on Kelsey Luedtke's serve. She ripped off seven service points with Johnson putting up two blocks. A CI time out at 16-9 did not stop the avalanche. Johnson finished off the game with three of the last four SLP points notching 8 for the first game. SLP won 25-12.

In game two CI came out with three straight points with Courtney Heinrich delivering two aces. A missed serve ended the brief CI moment in the sun. SLP then got a point due to rotation trouble. SLP's servers deliverd points on every serve as CI couldn't get the first ball side out. Another break point came on Angie Gormley's serve. She ripped off 11 straight points including four aces. This time Sara Delacey was dominating the middle for SLP. CI did manage to get a sideout to make it 23-10.

Game three was a study in contrasts. CI's body language and snafu's all added up. SLP started off up 1-0 before a serve due to illegal formation. SLP was able to side out each and every time CI served, while CI was incapable of getting the FBSO. Johnson again provided five points in this game. CI had problems with the hitting game in this game as they tried to set further and further away from the net to avoid the SLP middles.

photos: #1 Sara Delacey, #10 for SLP blocks a CI attack. #2 Alyssa Johnson, #8 SLP goes up for a quick. photos by kja
Click on the photo for a bigger view

SPRING LAKE PARK
1. Kelsey Luedtke, L 1-0-0---1
1fr Sara Delacey, MH (g1, 2) 0-1-3---4
1fr Hannah Hoffner, MH (g3) 0-1-2---3
2. Katie Wells, S 2-0-0---2
3. Melissa Backes, OH 1-0-3----4
3fr Brady Melberg, OH(g2, 3) 0-0-2---2
4. Alyssa Johnson, MH 1-5-9---15
4br Kelsey Luedtke, L
5. Angie Gormley, DS 5-0-0----5
5fr Natalee Yeazle, RS 0-0-4---4
6. Sierra Dooley, OH 1-0-4---5
totals: 11-7-27----45 points, 30 points from CI errors

CAMBRIDGE-ISANTI
1. Liz Johnson S (g1) 0-0-0----0
1. Courtney Heinrich, S 2-0-1---3
1. Melina Iverson, RH 0-0-1---1
2. Kelsey Locken, OH 0-0-0----0
2. Brittany Ross, OH 1-0-1----2
3. Kayla Horbacz., MH 0-0-3----3
4. Sanna Sjodin, RH 1-0-0---1
4. Liz Johnson, S (g2, 3) see above
5. Jess Wichman, OH (g1, 2) 0-0-2----2
5. Brittany Ross, OH (g3) see above
6. Mary Beth Zins, MH 0-1-1----2
6br Tricia Miller, L 0-0-0----0
totals: 4-1-9----14 points, 17 points on SLP Errors

TRENCH PLAYER
Alyssa Johnson

BY THE NUMBERS
Spring Lake Park 13/20; .650; 75; .600 earned; .548 allowed
Cambridge-Isanti 3/21; .143; 31; .451 earned; .400 allowed
Missed Serves: SLP 5; CI 4
CI had initial problems with passing which led to free balls, which led to a faster attack by SLP. It was a typical first game with CI facing too many rotation point give aways--three.

ROTATIONS
SPRING LAKE PARK
1 Luedtke 19-6 .760
2 Wells 13-7 .650
3 Backes 10-5 .667
4 Johnson 9-5 .643
5 Gormley 15-5 .750
6 Dooley 9-3 .750
totals: 75-31 .706

CAMBRIDGE-ISANTI
1 Heinrich 7-13 .350
2 Locken 6-8 .429
3 Horbacz 5-12 .294
4 Sjodin/Johnson 5-14 .263
5 Wichman 5-8 .385
6 Zins 3-18 .143
totals: 31-75 .292

next up: tomorrow morning

Everything New

#1 posting 8.22.2007
your daily dose of girls volleyball news & information

NEW HIGH SCHOOL
Shakopee has a new high school and the volleyball team is seen practicing in the article in the StarTribune South edition. They are already talking about a second high school in the Shakopee District. Shakopee is #2 in the AAA poll. From the Shakopee Valley News.

NEW OLD COACH
Sarah Herlofsky is back as the new volleyball coach at Spring Lake Park. She originally coached at SLP in 1997 and 98. She has a Q&A session in the StarTribune North edition.

COACHES SHOW
Concordia St. Paul will hold their first coaches show this fall on Thursday at 1:30. You can listen on the web.

Thanks to the readers for the help in getting this site rolling. If you have news, go to my profile and email me.

next up: tomorrow (but lately I have been getting an afternoon posting up if new warrants).