×
×
homepage logo

Panthers finish volleyball season as Region 6 runners-up

By Sue Sitter - | Nov 19, 2022

Sue Sitter/MDN Rugby middle blocker Lacie Deplazes sinks a kill into Our Redeemer’s Christian School territory during the championship round of the Region 6 tournament, held at Minot Municipal Auditorium, Minot, Nov. 11.

Rugby Panthers Volleyball Coach Jessica Fritz met a long-held goal to play for a chance at a state title when her team battled past two tough opponents at the Region 6 Class B tournament in Minot at Minot Municipal Auditorium Nov. 7-11.

When the Panthers eliminated District 11’s TGU, Drake-Anamoose and Bottineau for their ninth straight district title, Fritz said, “Our goal is to get back into that region championship game. Last year, Mohall kind of knocked us out (of regionals) right away. We came in a little flat.”

The Panthers had last made the final round at regionals in 2019, before a COVID pandemic and devastating injury sustained by key middle hitter Brooke Blessum threw Rugby for a loop, and far away from the championship.

“But this year, we’ve got to go in and get some revenge for everything that went down last year and come in a little more confident this year.”

The Panthers brought an abundant supply of confidence and the team had its revenge.

In the quarterfinals, Rugby faced a tough Surrey Mustangs squad that had knocked Des Lacs-Burlington’s Lakers out of District 12 contention. The Lakers had beaten the Panthers 3-0 during the regular season in September.

However, later in the season the Panthers had traveled to Surrey to defeat the Mustangs 3-1.

Panthers take on Mustangs

The Panthers used a strategy they had perfected with plenty of practice, alternating powerful spikes with discreet lobs just over the net to catch their opponents by surprise.

The quarterfinal match saw Panthers setter Joey Wolf realize a goal of her own. Wolf logged her 1,000th assist in the first set of the evening.

Rugby stayed in control of the first two sets of the game, winning 25-18, then 25-15. The Mustangs began the third set determined to stay for the semifinals.

Both teams fought tooth and nail for the lead, trading ties for slight leads until the Mustangs pulled ahead 23-22, leaving set and match point just out of reach for the Panthers.

A well-placed kill by outside hitter Peyton Hauck tied the set at 23 each, then outside hitter Mykell Heidlebaugh brought Rugby to game point before a lift violation gave Surrey the sideout.

A kill by middle blocker Kendra Leier, followed by an ace by Panthers libero Joran Jundt won the game for Rugby with a 26-24 final score.

Battle with Lions follows

Next came the Bishop Ryan Lions, a young team of powerful hitters that included sisters Tochi and Chinelo Udekwe, a freshman and junior.

The sisters would log nine kills between them in set 1.

The Lions took time out to celebrate setter Magee Rovig’s assist number 2,000 early in the set.

The Panthers applauded, then fought to maintain a slim lead throughout the game before winning the first set 25-20.

Middle hitter Lacie Deplazes joined Leier, Heidlebaugh, Wolf and opposite Savannah McCall to rack up impressive kill and block totals.

Her two kills and three blocks added to two blocks and one ace for Heidlebaugh, two kills for Hauck, two kills and one ace for Wolf, two kills for Leier and a block for McCall.

The catfight began in earnest in set 2. After two unanswered points from a block and kill by Deplazes, errors on both sides resulted in a 3-3 tie.

The evenly matched teams began a pattern of narrow leads, ties, and razor-thin deficits. Net serves and violations became another opponent to watch for both sides.

McCall broke a tie and put the Panthers in the lead by two with two blocks in a row. She would break a personal record for blocks that evening.

The teams stayed neck-and-neck before tying at 24 each. A kill by Chinelo Udekwe gave the Lions a 25-24 lead. Fritz called a timeout.

With confidence boosted, Heidlebaugh tied the score at 25 each with a kill.

Lions middle hitter Alena Johannsen answered with a kill to put Bishop Ryan back in the lead.

A Lions service error tied the score again at 26 before a Lions attack went astray to give the Panthers another point.

A Leier kill wrapped up the set 2 win for Rugby 28-26.

The Lions roared back to a 25-20 win in set 3. Both teams dug in for another set.

Bishop Ryan charged ahead with an early lead by four points before errors and a well-timed kill by Deplazes tied the score. Chinelo and Tochi Udekwe traded kills with Leier, McCall and Hauck. The Panthers fell slightly behind the Lions as the score climbed, but like the Lions, Rugby was not ready to give up.

Another Leier kill gave Rugby a 22-21 lead. An error tied the game again before McCall saw her 11th kill of the game put the Panthers in the lead again. At match point, a kill by Heidlebaugh brought the Panthers to the championship round with a 25-23 win.

Final round battle

The Panthers went four sets with Our Redeemer’s Christian School Nov. 11 after a snowstorm postponed the final round.

The Our Redeemer’s Knights, a team that had represented Region 6 ten years in a row at state, took the court looking for another trip to the big game.

Rugby fought the hardest it had all year to take that trip instead.

The Panthers honed in on their play, keeping away from net violations for the most part. Rugby stayed neck-and-neck with the Knights until the Panthers began to slip farther and farther behind.

After falling 14-25 to the Knights in the first set, the Panthers stormed onto the court, building an eight-point lead thanks to aces and kills by Hauck. Our Redeemer’s stormed back when Rugby had game point in sight, tying the score, then trading leads until Rugby fell 25-27.

The Panthers came back for more in set 3, building and keeping a lead before winning 25-19.

But Rugby began to show battle fatigue in set 4 with rare instances of miscommunication. Sometimes, as Fritz said after the game, “The ball literally didn’t bounce the way we wanted it to today.”

Both teams battled for the final points of the match, with bodies falling on the floor in attempts to save a point.

The Panthers came up just short of tying the match, falling 21-25 in the final set.

After the game, Heidlebaugh said she’d remember 2022’s volleyball season most for “just how well we fit together. We never gave up on each other, and I’ll remember what great chemistry we had and what a great team. I’m proud to call them a family.”

Like most Class B athletes, however, Heidlebaugh said her thoughts had already turned toward the 2022-23 basketball season.

“Obviously, you’ve got to cherish the memories from volleyball, but there is a point where you’ve just got to move on,” she said. “Basketball is coming up and it’s a new sport and a new start and we could possibly go to state for basketball.”

Heidlebaugh had cheered the Panthers basketball squad on in 2019, when they played to the championship round at the Betty Englestad Arena for the state tournament.

Fritz said she was proud of the way Heidlebaugh and the Panthers volleyball squad played at regionals.

“We knew Our Redeemer’s was going to be a tough team and we needed to play our best all night long with no letting up, ever,” she said.

Fritz called the Panthers’ determination to stay in the game through four sets “The best part.”

“They never let it get to them that they were down a little bit,” she said. “They fought back until the bitter end. That’s the thing about this group of girls. They’re really resilient.”

“This is an amazing group of girls and this season will always hold a special place in my heart because this is a great group of kids, she added.

“This group of girls never got upset with each other; they were never hard on each other. They went out there and supported each other through everything,” she said.

“And that’s the best part of this team. They never, ever got frustrated with each other. There was no drama. There was nothing like that there was just hard work all the time,” Fritz added.

Fritz said she planned to return to coaching volleyball in 2023. “I’m just going to turn around and do it again,” she said, smiling.

She added watching her team excel in sports and other activities was something she loved to do.

“I love watching them play all year round,” she said of the Panthers. “With this group, (watching them play basketball) will be a fun thing to do.”

Athletes named to the Region 6 All-Region Team were: Ellie Braaten Westhope-Newburg; Harley Dickman, Surrey; Aubrey Greidel, Our Redeemer’s; Peyton Hauck, Rugby High School; Hailey Heisler, Velva; Shaylie Holen, Des Lacs Burlington; Magee Rovig, Bishop Ryan; Morgan Schweitzer, Bottineau; Taryn Sieg, Drake-Anamoose; Kylee Simpson, Bottineau; Azjiah Trader, South Prairie Max ; Chinelo Udekwe, Bishop Ryan; Mya Borud, Our Redeemer’s; Joey Wolf, Rugby.

Taryn Sieg was named Region 6 Senior Athlete of the Year

Nick Theis of Bishop Ryan was named Region 6 Coach of the Year.