SECTION 3A SOUTH CHAMPIONSHIP: No. 1S TMB sweeps No. 2S Windom Area
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MARSHALL – The battle of the top two teams in the South section of the 3A volleyball tournament saw the Tracy-Milroy-Balaton Panthers dominate the court as they faced the Windom Area Eagles in the sub-section finals match of the tournament. TMB saw the Eagles in their very first match of the season in August and came out with the win in four matches. Last night, the Panthers found success as they swept the Eagles in a quick, energy-filled three-set match, 25-20, 25-19, 25-16.
TMB's head coach Rick Haberman thought the girls played really well tonight and had a good balanced offensive attack, which helped them come out on top.
"I thought the kids really played well together and we had a good balanced offensive attack and our center Cassidy Smith sped around really well and that made us tough to defend because we had a lot of kids contributing offensively, but the big thing is that the kids played really hard and they really played well together," said Haberman.
The Eagles came on top very quickly in the first set with a lead over the Panthers, 3-0. TMB had no intentions of Windom holding that lead for very long as they fought back hard to tie up the score at 3-3. The Eagles strong offense brought them to another lead over TMB at 7-4. The Panthers continued to play tough and aggressive offense and defense, coming back from behind to tie the score back up at 7-7. TMB found their opportunity to shine and found themselves holding the lead, 12-8. The Panthers never looked back after taking the lead and gave the Eagles little chances to fight back at 18-11. Windom found what they were looking for on offense, slowly creeping up on the Panthers and tied it back up at 19-19. The tie didn't scare TMB away from doing what they do best, coming out with the first set win of the night, 25-20.
TMB and Windom both came into the second set with the same mindset, and were determined to win. They started off the set with a quick tie, 3-3. The Panthers saw their chance to pull ahead and they did, finding the lead very fast at 10-5. The Eagles played tough offense to keep TMB on their toes on defense. The Panthers continue to hold the lead 13-12, with Windom slowly creeping up on TMB. The Panthers didn't let the Eagles strong offense stop them from playing aggressive on defense, and they continued to pull away from Windom, 17-14. The Eagles never gave up during the set, scoring points with any chance they were given and keeping the score close, 19-17. The Panthers came out on top and found themselves with another win of the night, 25-19, to lead the match, 2-0.
The Panthers and the Eagles started the third set off much like the second set, with a fast tie at 2-2. Both teams had points going back and forth for the first few points of the game, finding themselves tied until TMB pulls ahead with a one point lead, 6-5. The Panthers pull away even more, leaving the Eagles behind, 12-7. TMB's offense shined as they racked on the points to hold the lead the rest of the match giving the Panthers their last win of the night, 25-16, sweeping the Eagles and becoming the Section 3A South champions.
Kaylee Kirk led the Panthers in digs with a total of 19, following her were teammates Cassidy Smith with 14 and Sydney Lanoue with 13. TMB finished the night with 57 digs as a team. Kirk also had a perfect serving night along with Evelyn Dolan. Smith led the team in sets with 32 and Kirk with three, giving the Panthers a total of 35 assists. Lanoue found her self on top tonight in kills with a total of 19, Sidney Karbo with eight and not far behind Karbo was Dolan with seven, the Panthers totaled a number of 41 kills last night.
Going into the championship game, Haberman wants the kids to focus on how well they played on offense and defense and have a positive outlook moving forward.
"Right now it's just awesome to move on and we're pleased with that. I think we did a good job of slowing them (Eagles) down and being able to go on some mini runs, and having really good balance on offense was a big help towards the win," said Haberman.
TMB will play in the Section 3A Championship game against the Minneota Vikings Saturday at 7:30 p.m. in the R/A Facility at Southwest Minnesota State University. The Panthers have seen the Vikings once this season and came out with a win in a four-set match, hoping to come out with another victory to clinch a spot in the MSHSL State Tournament next week that will be held at the Xcel Energy Center.