St. Croix Lutheran had to regroup and do so quickly. Then it had to do it again and again.
The Crusaders kept bouncing back against Hawley in a Class 2A quarterfinal of the state volleyball tournament at Xcel Energy Center on Thursday until they ran out of chances.
Hawley ended up with a 19-25, 25-23, 20-25, 25-17, 15-13 win to advance.
The Crusaders had four attack errors late in the fourth set as Hawley scored the final six points to tie the match at two games apiece.
“Volleyball is a game of momentum, plus, with the experience we have on our team, we were able to reset, and it was 0-0 again,” St. Croix Lutheran setter Sophia Rubio said.
Down by three early in the final set, three straight points by Anna Spott put the Crusaders up 11-9, before Hawley scored five straight points and had match point.
A block by Callie Oakland and a kill from Alivia Grahl got St. Croix Lutheran within one.
“Pressure is a privilege” said libero Savanna Moe, saying its something the team talks about before each match. “We’re like a family. We’ve played in big games like this before and just know how to calm each other down and be a team.”
“One of the great things about this team is trust, being together and resetting after every point,” added Spott, an outside hitter.
But after a Hawley timeout, a service error allowed the Nuggets to complete their rally and win a tight battle in five games.
“We’ve been having so many experiences where they’ve been challenged in five-setters, four-setters,” Hawley coach Kathleen Rustad said. “They sure executed tonight.”
Third-seeded Hawley (27-5) will face No. 2 Chatfield in a semifinal back at Xcel Energy Center at 7 p.m. today. Seeded sixth, St. Croix Lutheran (25-2) will face No. 7 Rush City in the consolation round at the same time.
“We talked a lot about resiliency and coming back from this tough match, just knowing that they gave it their all and knowing that we come back again tomorrow and be ready to go,” Crusaders coach Rachel Grev said of her post-match message.
Oakland led the Crusaders with 12 kills. Spott and Alivia Grahl each got nine and Luiza Chaves Ughini and Ella McKee had seven apiece.
Setters Rubio and Olivia Footh each had 22 assists. Moe had a team-best 33 digs.