Prep Volleyball: Cardinals fall to Brainerd in five-set thriller

WILLMAR - The Willmar volleyball squad lost a heartbreaker at home Thursday night, dropping the final two sets to lose to Brainerd in five.
The Cardinals were dominant in the middle of the match and looked to put the Warriors away, but two rallies and dropping an extra-points final set spelled their fifth straight loss.
The Cardinals scored two straight points to tie the final set at 15, but promptly dropped the next two points and the match.
Carly Wedel and Catelyn Haug were huge factors for Willmar’s offense, piling up 17 and 12 kills, respectively. Setter Esther Grussing was all over the court with 3 aces, 38 assists, two blocks and 10 digs. Addie Erickson had 21 digs and three aces.
For the visitors, Kirsten Johnshoy had 17 assists, three blocks and nine digs, and Madi Stall led the team with four aces and 29 digs. Nicole Borg headed the attack with 10 kills.
Willmar next hosts a tournament which is scheduled to begin Saturday at 8 a.m. and features eight teams.
brainerd 3, willmar 2
Brainerd (8-12) 25 18 20 25 17
Willmar (4-6) 21 25 25 19 15
Brainerd
Serving (aces): Madi Stall 4, Mercedes Stavig 2, Kirsten Johnshoy 2, Kellie Fletcher 1, Nicole Borg 1 Set assists: Johnshoy 17, Cara Sas 10 Hitting (kills): Borg 10, Stavig 6, Courtney Russell 6, Fletcher 4 Blocking (aces): Stavig 3, Johnshoy 3, Borg 1 Digs: Stall 29, Sas 9, Johnshoy 9
Willmar
Serving (aces): Addie Erickson 3, Catelyn Haug 3, Esther Grussing 3, Heidi Sellmann 3, Cami Sletta 1 Set assists: Grussing 38 Hitting (kills): Carly Wedel 17, Haug 12, Grace Marti 6, Sellmann 4, Grussing 2 Blocking (aces): Sellmann 3, Grussing 2, Wedel 2, Marti 2 Digs: Erickson 21, Haug 17, Emma Rosen 13, Sam Pina 11, Grussing 10, Wedel 9, Sellman 8, Sletta 5