Card volleyball: Alexandria takes down Otters

Talk about it

Sporting as much pink as both teams could muster, Alexandria and Fergus Falls took to the volleyball floor for “Block Out Cancer” night Tuesday, the second annual event between the two squads as part of Breast Cancer Awareness month.

The event, which began last fall at the Jefferson High School gym as “Dig Pink” night, again saw the Cardinals come through with a Central Lakes Conference win, defeating the Otters 25-19, 25-21, 20-25, 25-15.

That win kept the Cardinals’ CLC mark perfect heading into last night’s match-up with Rocori in what may end up as the showdown for the league title.

Both teams headed into last night’s game 8-0 after the Spartans defeated Sartell 25-15, 20-25, 25-22, 25-20 Tuesday.

Alexandria had to rally late to tie the score at 19 in the opening set, then rattled off six straight points for the win.

They repeated that scenario in set two, this time using five straight volleys to go up 2-0.

In the third set, Alexandria was not able to come back, allowing the Otters to pick up the win, but the Redbirds put together a solid fourth set to win by 10.

“The Cardinals were excited to test out a new lineup, featuring junior Quinn Kragenbring in one of our setting roles, and shifting junior Laurel Thompson to a more solid outside hitter role,” said Cardinal head coach Becky Schlichting.

“Things went well. The girls had great chemistry and energy throughout, and it seemed like we’d been using this lineup for much longer than the two days we’ve tried it out.”

Kragenbring ended up with 17 set assists on the night, with Allie Noetzelman dishing out 21.

“These assists were divided throughout the team, with Sam Trumm getting 15, Brianna Johnson receiving seven and Rachel Thompson and Cameron Swedberg each earning six,” said Schlichting.

Shanee Herd led the Redbirds with 23 digs, while Trumm added 10 and Kragenbring, Johnson and Danielle Warren contributed nine each.

“Overall, it was a very fun night for the girls,” added the Card coach. “This win continues our undefeated streak in the conference.”

ALEXANDRIA 3, FERGUS FALLS 1

ALEXANDRIA 25 25 20 25

FERGUS FALLS 19 21 25 15

ALEXANDRIA STATISTICS

KILLS – Allie Noetzelman 4, Brianna Johnson 7, Cameron Swedberg 6, Kaitlin Becker 4, Laurel Thompson 2, Rachel Thompson 6, Sam Trumm 15. BLOCKS – Johnson 1, Becker 1, R. Thompson 2, Trumm 2. ACES – Noetzelman 3, Danielle Warren 1, L. Thompson 2, Quinnn Kragenbring 2. ASSISTS – Noetzelman 21, Kragenbring 17. DIGS – Johnson 9, Warren 8, Trumm 10, Shanee Herd 23, Kragenbring 9.

Tags: alexandria sports, sports, home, team, cardinals, volleyball, fergus, falls