MONTEVIDEO -- A second straight upset has thrust the Montevideo volleyball team into the Section 3AA-North championship match.
The No. 6 Thunder Hawks (16-9) shaded No. 2 Morris 23-25, 25-13, 25-12, 14-25, 17-15 in a section semifinal Monday.
Last week, Montevideo knocked out No. 3 Yellow Medicine East, 3-1. The Thunder Hawks will face top-seed Benson, which beat BOLD 3-1 earlier in the day, at 7:30 p.m. Thursday at the R/A Facility on the Southwest Minnesota State University campus in Marshall.
Morris gained the upper hand early, winning the first game 25-23, but Montevideo stormed back to take a 2-1 lead.
"We really controlled the second and third (games) and then got the same treatment in the fourth game," said Montevideo coach Joanna Magnuson.
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The final game went back and forth after the Thunder Hawks held an early 3-0 lead.
"They're a good team," Magnuson said. "We played really well at times and didn't play well at times."
Brooke Tastad pounded down 20 kills to lead Montevideo. Jaci Clauson and Miranda Kostboth had three ace blocks each. Carly Beals had 23 set assists and Elissa Christensen collected 19 digs.
Morris statistics were not available at press time.
Montevideo 3, Morris 2
Montevideo 23 25 25 14 17
Morris 25 13 12 25 15
(Key: good-attempts-aces)
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Montevideo
Serving: Nichole Strei 11-13-1, Hayley Kubista 20-21-2, Carly Beals 9-10-0, Beka Schwendemann 27-29-1, Karrissa Larson 9-10-1, Elissa Christensen 12-14-1 ... Setting: Strei 47-48-17, Beals 63-65-23, Schwendemann 4-4-1, Miranda Kostboth 2-2-2 ... Hitting: Beals 5-5-2, Brooke Tastad 37-43-20, Jaci Clauson 4-7-3, Schwendemann 29-33-8, Kostboth 13-15-7, Larson 9-12-4, Christensen 4-4-0 ... Blocking (aces): Beals 1, Tastad 1, Clauson 3, Schwendemann 2, Kostboth 3, Larson 2 ... Digs: Strei 2, Kubista 2, Beals 2, Tastad 2, Schwendemann 9, Christensen 19
Morris
Statistics not available
Benson 3, BOLD 1
The Warriors (12-12) held control in the first game, but the Braves (25-4) wrested it away in the second game and didn't look back.
Kayla Hampton clubbed 14 kills, served four aces and had three ace blocks for Benson. Emily Auch followed with nine kills and 12 digs, Taylor Semler had 25 set assists, served five aces and had 12 digs, and Rachel Bausman added eight kills and 11 digs.
Nikki Neisen paced BOLD with 10 kills and three ace serves, Sarah Gass served three aces and Brittany Nissen had 15 digs.
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BOLD 25 19 21 12
Benson 20 25 25 25
(Key: good-attempts-aces)
BOLD
Serving: Sarah Gass 17-18-3, Alex Ebnet 1-1-0, Katie Wick 8-10-0, Steph Novotny 13-14-1, Molly Herdina 12-14-4, Brittany Nissen 10-11-3, Nikki Neisen 8-8-0 ... Setting: Gass 22-22-7, Wick 2-2-2, Novotny 31-32-5, Tyann Caspers 12-14-4 ... Hitting: Wick 5-11-4, Novotny 5-8-2, Caspers 13-17-6, Herdina 4-7-0, Nissen 11-12-3, Neisen 18-23-10 ... Blocking (aces): Wick 1, Caspers 2, Herdina 1, Neisen 1 ... Digs: Ebnet 5, Novotny 6, Herdina 4, Brenna Holwerda 4, Nissen 15, Neisen 12, Caspers 2, Amber Hoese 2
Benson
Serving: Emily Auch 10-11-0, Monica Lindblad 10-10-1, Kayla Hampton 17-17-4, Mallory Jensen 22-23-2, Taylor Semler 18-20-5, Rachel Bausman 9-11-1 ... Setting: Semler 96-98-25 ... Hitting: Auch 14-25-9, Lindblad 2-5-0, Hampton 25-39-14, Jensen 10-12-2, Semler 7-10-5, Bausman 14-20-8 ... Blocking (aces): Auch 2, Lindblad 3, Hampton 3, Jensen 2 ... Digs: Auch 12, Lindblad 8, Hampton 11, Jensen 10, Semler 12, Emma Peterson 1, Bausman 11
