Photo cutline: Sue Sitter/PCT Rugby’s Kendra Leier goes for a block against the Bottineau Stars in Bottineau Oct. 6.

A battle-weary Panthers volleyball squad fell to the Bottineau Stars 4-1 in Bottineau Thursday, Oct. 6.

The loss came on the heels of a crucial win in Velva against the Aggies Oct. 4, and an earlier two-day tournament where the Panthers battled Our Redeemer’s Christian School, Langdon Area/Edmore/Munich, Carrington, Powers Lake and LaMoure/Litchville/Marion in Des Lacs.

After the game in Bottineau, the Panthers would have one day to recover before they left for Carrington to face the Carrington Cardinals one more time.

“We’ve come off a pretty busy 10 days,” Rugby Coach Jessica Fritz said. “We played eight games in that DLB tournament. We played that tough match in Velva. We’ve played a lot of tough games.”

“We’ve had a couple sick and a couple of injuries,” Fritz added.

Panthers middle hitter Kendra Leier had sat the game against Velva out, nursing a knee injury.

However, Fritz acknowledged that the Stars had set the pace for the game from the very first set.

“We just started off slow tonight and couldn’t get on top of their momentum and we just played a little flat,” she said. “But, it’s all right. You can’t win ’em all. You’ve just got to come back stronger.”

Velva seemed plagued by net violations in their first set loss against Rugby Oct. 4. The Panthers had knocked the Aggies off-balance from the beginning, however, with blocks by Rugby’s Savannah McCall and kills by Mykell Heidlebaugh and Lacie Deplazes.

A kill by Rugby’s Peyton Hauck wrapped up set one 25-19, while kills by McCall and Deplazes ended sets two and three against Velva with 25-23 and 25-22 wins after close battles.

The Panthers seemed overwhelmed in Bottineau, where a large contingent of Stars fans in the gym’s student section engaged in frequent shouting contests with Rugby’s student section.

The Stars played aggressively from the start, with a kill by middle hitter Kylie Simpson setting the tone. Bottineau would have a six-point lead before the Panthers saw their first point, which came from an out-of-bounds Stars attack.

Long rallies for points followed. An ace by Heidlebaugh soon tied the score at 6 each, leading to a neck-and-neck race up the scoreboard.

The Stars pulled ahead again, on a block and a save by libero Morgan Schweitzer.

The Panthers saw more attacks blocked and even more Stars saves. Bottineau stayed in control, winning set 1, 25-17.

Set 2 saw the Panthers make errors. Attacks went out of bounds. Both teams traded leads before the Stars pulled ahead 9-6, before a kill by Leier gave Rugby hope for a comeback.

Still, Bottineau stayed in control. After one ace from Rugby libero Joran Jundt earlier in the game, it seemed Jundt would have a second one when she seemed to catch the Stars unaware with a serve to mid-court. The Stars won the point anyway, with a kill from their front line.

Rugby stayed closer to the Stars in this set, tying several times. Kyra Beckman of the Stars traded kills with Rugby’s Heidlebaugh. After closing in on the Stars one more time, Panthers errors gave the set to Bottineau, 25-22.

Set 3 tested both teams. The Panthers scored the first point of the game when Deplazes sneaked a kill just over the net.

The Stars stayed on the Panthers’ tails. Both teams showed signs of wear. Both refused to give up.

As the score climbed, Rugby put some distance between itself and the Stars with a block by McCall. A kill by Heidlebaugh gave Rugby a 25-20 win.

The intensity of set 4 had fans on the edge of their bleachers.

Rugby started in the lead when a kill by McCall and an ace by Deplazes sent the ball bouncing off Stars’ hands into the seats.

The Stars won the sideout with a Schweitzer kill. Then, an ace by Emma Rybchinski tied the set.

The pattern continued before the Panthers had a five-point lead. After a spike by Heidlebaugh sent the ball bouncing of Stars hands again, Bottineau worked to get revenge.

Errors and kills by Beckman inched the Stars closer to Rugby before they tied the score at 23.

The teams traded one-point leads and ties at game point. After a block by Schweitzer, three errors, one by Bottineau and two by Rugby, ended the game with a 26-24 Bottineau win.

After a talk with her team at the game’s end, Fritz said she discussed the Panthers’ outlook for District 11 post-season play, which starts the last week of October.

“I just told them that last year, they came in as the fourth seed in districts,” Fritz said. “They were able to get those wins when they mattered most.”

The Panthers had won the District 11 championship for a seventh consecutive time in 2021.

” It would have been nice to get this win tonight and secure our place, but now, we’ve got to see the way every other team falls and we’ll take whatever place we’re given and we’ll play hard,” Fritz said.

“We go to Carrington this weekend,” Fritz added. “That will be a tough one.”

Results from the Panthers’ game against the Carrington Cardinals in Carrington will appear in the Oct. 22 Tribune.