The Bulldogs played a fantastic match against St. Cloud Cathedral at home on Tuesday, Sept. 14. It was unbelievable. The team was so fired up and the fans were wild. The Bulldogs upset undefeated Cathedral in a five-game match.
The Bulldogs lost the first game 15-8, but they just needed to figure out what they had to do to win because Cathedral was a tough team. There were some really great attempts by the Bulldogs, but Cathedral snuck by in the first game.
The second game was better. The girls pulled together and really played well. The girls had consistent serves, which really helped, and made good plays. They racked up a win for that game by a score of 15-11.
In the third game, the Bulldogs needed a win, and they were still up from their win the previous game. That helped them a lot, and they earned another victory 15-11.
The fourth game was another story. The Bulldogs regressed a little that game. They had a bad game and made simple mistakes. Cathedral won easily 15-3, leading to a deciding fifth set.
The fifth game was just incredible! It was some of the best played volleyball that a lot of the players, fans, and coaches have seem in a long time. The Bulldogs were digging, hitting, and playing like never before. They all had some really great saves that kept them in the game. They were communicating trying to keep each other in the game, and, most of all, they were having a lot of fun.
At one point the Bulldogs trailed 12-2 in that last game, but their playing pulled them to victory with a fabulous score of 15-13.
"It was really a great accomplishment," said co-captain Tanya Lieser.
Of course their coach, Sheila Mayer, was also very happy and proud of her team. "The girls had great teamwork and they also worked hard," said Mayer.
Another thing that was really great were the supporting fans. Thanks to all who came.
| Cathedral-- | 15 | 11 | 11 | 15 | 13 |
| Paynesville-- | 8 | 15 | 15 | 3 | 15 |
Individual Results
Hitting: Tanya Lieser 47/53 - 18A; Carrie Hemmesch 33/39 - 9A; Courtney Karsch 23/31 - 9A; Joy Hemmesch 26/32 - 5A; Jenny Habben 5/5 - 5A;
Serving: Lieser 22/23 - 4A; Karsch 19/19 - 4A; Steph Krupke 19/20 - 2A;
Setting: Krupke 124/128 - 36A;
Ace blocks: J. Hemmesch - 6; Lieser - 5; Karsch - 3; C. Hemmesch - 2;
Tipping: Lieser 5/7 - 2A.
Paynesville 3
LPGE 2
The Bulldogs had another close match on Thursday at Long Prairie-Grey Eagle. Again, the match went to five games. Again, the Bulldogs had their good games and their bad games. But, they pulled through and won again in five.
The girls saved their best for last again, winning the crucial fifth game 15-13. The Bulldogs trailed 9-1 but rallied to win 15-13...again. Tanya Lieser had seven points serving in the rally, and Steph Krupke finished serving the last suspenseful points. "We play the best when we talk on and off the court. The louder we are, the better we play. We also need to keep the consistency in our games," said Mayer.
The Bulldogs are now 4-1 overall.
| Paynesville-- | 15 | 4 | 15 | 11 | 15 |
| LPGE-- | 10 | 15 | 6 | 15 | 13 |
Individual Results:
Hitting: Lieser 31/38-12A; C. Hemmesch 22/29-6A;
Serving: Lieser 23/23-5A; Krupke 25/28-4A; J. Hemmesch 24/24;
Digs: Lieser 46/48; Krupke 45/45;
Ace sets: Krupke 16; Jenni Mayer 9;
Tipping: J. Hemmesch 28/36-6A;
Ace blocks: Lieser 9; J. Hemmesch 4.
The Bulldogs had a game on Monday against Kimball. They played yesterday at home against Melrose, and they have a home game against Albany tomorrow. Be there!
Junior varsity
The junior varsity team is 2-3 so far this season. They are coached by Dawn Knoll. The Bulldogs had an excellent first match against Litchfield. They really played aggressively, even with the extreme heat.
They then played at home against Maple Lake. The won their first game, but lost their last two. The next two games were against Sauk Centre and Cathedral. They were close, but the Bulldogs didn't quite pull it off.
When they played Long Prairie, They went in to it with an aggressive attitude and it really paid off. They won their first game 15-2. The second game they were down 10-0, but came back and lost 15-11.
They competed extremely hard in the third game and won. Ashley Wall was the top server in that match with 11/11- 2A. Kelli Heinen did very well setting with 23/24. Heidi Jansen hit 15/15 with one ace, and Lisa Hemmingson was perfect in 14 passes.