Photos by Samantha Davis: The Russell-Tyler-Ruthton volleyball team crashes to the court after winning the Section 3A Tournament Saturday night at Southwest Minnesota State University, clinching its return to the state tournament. The Knights defeated the Vikings 3-1. Below: RTR seniors Ava Karbo and Brezlyn Buchert bring the section trophy to the team.

MARSHALL — Clinching its return to the Class A State Tournament in three years after making its state debut in 2023, the Russell-Tyler-Ruthton volleyball team defeated Minneota 3-1 in the Section 3A championship in a battle between the section’s top-seeds Saturday night at Southwest Minnesota State University. The Knights prevailed in sets of 25-21, 25-23, 21-25 and 25-15. The Vikings finish their season 27-7 overall.

“I’m still feeling so much adrenaline, I’m just so proud of my team. I was shaking the whole game, because I knew we could do it,” RTR junior outside hitter Paisley Thooft said. “The team just knew we could do it, we had all the weapons that we could use… I think the third set, we were just so, so excited, we could feel it like it was right there, and it just got away at us. So for that fourth set, we came in and we were like, ‘We are not stopping. We’re going, and this is our game.'”

“It’s just an amazing feeling,” RTR senior middle blocker Ava Karbo added. “We [Karbo and Brezlyn Buchert, RTR’s two seniors] wanted to be there [at state] our senior year … We really just pushed ourselves tonight.”

Saturday was a rematch of the 2023 section championship, in which RTR also defeated Minneota in five sets and went on to win the Class A Tournament for its first state title.”

“We knew it wasn’t going to be easy, and we were going to have to come out hard and we were going to have to fight. At the end of it, RTR, they played a heck of a game,” Minneota head coach Kaley Buysse said. “They were battling, they had the energy and the momentum, and we just couldn’t seem to find that steady flow of our game… They’re [Minneota] going to be hungry. They’re going to have to come back and want more, and we will have to do that. We’re going to put in the work, and they’ll be ready.”

Minneota and RTR made their way to the championship with a near-identical path following another impressive regular and postseason run for the two, foreshadowing the competitive fight for the state ticket. The Vikings entered with a 27-6 overall record and ranked No. 2 in the state by the final Class A coaches poll, winning the North’s subsection championship in their ninth-straight appearance, while the Knights came in at 27-5 and ranked No. 3, taking the South’s subsection title. Both teams were given the No. 1 seed in the section tournament between North and South.

“Just sheer excitement. These starters were part of that 2023 [state] team, they had the taste of it, and so they just wanted it,” RTR head coach Daynica Brown said. “You could tell they were focused, driven, and had a lot of energy. They went after it, they were very resilient, from the front block, to the defense, to the hitting. They never stopped.”

RTR entered the fourth set with a 2-1 lead on the night, and made its statement evident early on, bolstering a 7-2 lead after a few Minneota errors paired with a Paisley Thooft and Karbo kill.

Jaylyn Coequyt continued to help lead the front of the net for the Vikings to cut into a 7-4 deficit, yet Karbo stopped the potential run early on with another kill.

The Knights got several contributors involved on the offensive end, along with a strong back row, to withstand the Vikings’ aggressive comeback attempt, who came within 2 points, down 9-7.

Paisley Thooft recorded her 16th kill of the night to give RTR a 13-7 lead, which extended to 19-12 following kills from Brynn Borresen, Dru Ellefson and Karbo.

“We just put our foot on the pedal and we were not giving up. We went out for everything we could, and we told ourselves to keep that confidence,” Paisley Thooft said. “I’m just so proud of my team, because we all came together and we were able to win it.”

After a Minneota receiving error, Ellefson put the Knights up by 10 points, 22-12, when RTR began to feel within reach of the section title.

RTR’s final 3 points, officially clinching its state return, came from a Sara Thooft kill before Paisley Thooft ended the night with back-to-back kills off the left side of the net.

“We had so much confidence in ourselves that we could do it. I know we came down a little bit in the third set, and then we came back, but we just knew that we could have gotten that third set,” Karbo said of RTR’s turnaround. “I think that just got us a little mad, so we just got back at them.”

The Knights’ entire team and coaching staff crashed to midcourt, followed moments later by the trophy ceremony.

“I give it all to that team that went [to state] in 2023. I was a part of it as a freshman, and watching them just made me realize that I want to go back there one day, and I want to do exactly what they did,” Paisley Thooft said. “They set the tone for us at RTR, and we want to show them that we’re going to continue their reputation.”

For the Knights, Paisley and Sara Thooft led the way with 15 and 14 kills, respectively, while Karbo followed with nine. Ellefson paced the offense with 21 assists, as did Buchert with 19. Defensively, Laken Baartman had 27 digs while Borreson and Karbo protected the front of the net with six and five blocks.

The Vikings were led by Jaylyn Coequyt and Eden Meagher with 20 and 15 kills, brought by Libby Sussner’s 38 assists. Sophie Gillund followed with 17 assists. Abby Rolbiecki and Meagher controlled the defense with 18 and 17 digs, respectively. Leah Coequyt had a team-high three blocks.

Minneota and RTR went point-for-point nearly the entire night through the first three sets, with neither able to break away to a comfortable lead, supported by a crowded and energetic crowd on both sides of the bleachers.

Both teams traded points to begin the opening set up to a 10-10 tie, with Minneota’s Jaylyn Coequyt and Meagher getting the offense started while RTR’s Karbo and Paisley Thooft did the same.

The two also set the defensive tone from the jump, with the back row on both sides making numerous diving saves.

“Defense is a big thing. Offense wins games, defense wins championships at times,” Baartman said. “Our big thing we want to do is go out there and get a touch on the ball, and trust our hitters, too. We have amazing haters, so we know that they will put the ball away.”

RTR was able to break away on a 15-12 lead with a Karbo block, yet Meagher responded with a kill, along with a Knights’ hitting error and a Jaylyn and Leah Coequyt block to give Minneota three straight points, again tying the set up 15-15.

The Knights gained back a 19-16 edge after a Jaida Fricke service ace, forcing Minneota to call a timeout. RTR secured the first set following a Sara Thooft kill for match point.

“It’s unbelievable, I don’t think it’s set in yet. It’s just a crazy feeling,” Baartman said. “I’m just so thankful for this team, and I’m so glad we got the opportunity to play. We just came out here and played, and didn’t worry about anything else.”

After another back-and-forth start to begin the second set, the Knights again pulled a 3-point lead, 9-6, after two straight blocks between Ellefson, Borresen and Paisley Thooft.

Sarah Gruenes ended the run with a kill, followed by a hit from Sophie Gillund, to trail 9-8.

The set eventually tied 16-16, and again at 22. A hard kill from Paisley Thooft put RTR up a point, to which Meagher responded with a kill of her own.

The Knights took a 2-0 lead on the night following a Sara Thooft kill and a Vikings’ hitting error.

The Vikings caught fire in the must-win third set, sparked and controlled by Jaylyn Coequyt’s strong left-arm swing. Minneota embarked on a 7-1 lead to start, with Jaylyn Coequyt accounting for five of the points with kills.

Paisley Thooft and Ellefson put a halt to the run with kills, along with a Minneota net violation and attacking error to immediately tie the score 7-7.

The Vikings earned their largest lead of the night at 11-7 after a Gruenes kill, yet the Knights again returned the favor, taking the next 4 points to tie the score back up.

Meagher, Jaylyn Coequyt and Gruenes continued Minneota’s offense, with the help of Rolbiecki, Autum Anderson and Madison Minnehan in the back row, to gain a 23-17 advantage. The Vikings took the set following a pair of Knights errors to force the fourth set.

“That third set was really good for us. We came out, and it felt like we were back in our groove, doing what we do, and moving the ball around and doing well defensively. We just weren’t able to hold on to that,” Buysse said. “It’s tough when you know that you’ve seen them play better, and it wasn’t necessarily our best showing. Huge props to RTR … It was a battle. It could have been anybody’s at the end of the day.”

Both RTR and Minneota swept their way to reach the section championship, except for the Vikings defeating MACCRAY 3-1 in the subsection championship.

Minneota graduates its senior duo of Gruenes and Rolbiecki.

“They’ve both been huge leaders and have just really taken that role and run with it this season. Abby, obviously, being the libero the past few seasons, has completely led the back row and just done so well. You know when she’s out there that there’s not going to be much that’s going to hit the floor,” Buysse said. “Sarah, in the front row, she really came alive this season and just did so many good things. Offensively, she was a huge contributor, and just did so many positive things.”

RTR (28-5) next prepares for the Class A State Tournament, which is set to begin on Thursday at the Grand Casino Arena, formerly known as the Xcel Energy Center, in St. Paul. The Knights received the two-seed and will face #7 Nevis (23-7) at 7 p.m. on Court 2. Class A 2024 defending champions Mayer-Lutheran received the first seed.

“We are on a mission. We want to represent 3A, because there are all these great teams down here. Minneota is a great team, Canby is a great team, MACCRAY, Westbrook-Walnut Grove, you can go through the list … There are great teams in Section 3A, and I want to represent them well, beyond us at RTR, but as a community,” Brown said. “I want it [state title] as a whole. For our community, our athletes, our team, but also to represent here, because there are teams that should be a state, too, with us … We’re excited. Three more wins.”