Upsetting second-seeded Buffalo Lake-Hector-Stewart 3-1 in the Section 2A semifinal in St. Peter on Tuesday, the Clipper girls, repeating the 2022 scenario, will take on top-ranked Mayer Lutheran in the section championship on Thursday.
Game one went to the Mustangs. Game two could have gone either way, but Cleveland emerged with the triumph. But upping their offense, the Clippers took control after that to win the next two games and the match.
“In that first set, I don’t think we were ready to play,” said Ava Hahn, who led the offense with 25 kills on the night. “We had a lot of nerves, especially in the locker room. After that first set, we just talked about calming our nerves. In the second set, we just came out as we normally play”
Since the Clippers had cakewalks in their last regular season game and the first two section games, Hahn said it might have helped to have closer matches leading up to the section semi, but the easy games didn’t hurt either.
“It would be nice to have more competition, but we always come ready to play I feel. It is working.”
The Clippers lost the first game 25-21. It started on an Hahn kill, but with the Clippers in front 8-8, the Mustangs took advantage of a kill and three Clipper mishits for a four-point spurt.
With a couple of Hahn kills, the Clippers pulled within one, 14-13, but BLHS responded with a kill and the Clippers socked the ball into the net after the next serve for a 16-13 Mustang advantage.
Hahn rolled over a winner and served an ace, but the Mustangs won the next four points, three of them on winners. The game ended on a kill.
Game two was like watching two kids on a teeter-totter with neither team scoring more than two points in a row. The game started with a Clipper hit out of bounds. With the score stalemated 23-24, the Mustangs hit into the mesh, and Melia Sathoff followed with a kill for the 25-23 triumph.
Evening the match 1-1 was the turning point, said head coach Dave Nixon.
“We needed to pull out that second set. You don’t want to go down two nothing. We didn’t play great in the first set; they did. We weren’t connecting. We couldn’t get rolling in the first set, so winning the second set was huge.”
With kills by Anika Sathoff and Hahn and back-to-back Anika Sathoff ace serves, the Clippers got of to a 6-1 start in game three and, with Hahn and Taylor McCabe on the warpath, never trailed. The frame ended decisively 25-14 on a Luci Blaschko ace serve.
BLHS only has nine players on their roster, half as many as the Clippers, and that is why they began to fade, Nixon said.
“They’re going to get worn out. They don’t get many breaks. The longer the match the more it got into our favor.”
Game four started on a Hahn kill. At the net, McCabe twisted around for a kill that put the Clippers in front 4-3, and they never lost the lead from there.
After both teams spiked a winner, Jocelyn Bartell, Anika Sathoff and Melia Sathoff teamed up for three-straight kills that put the Clippers up 8-5. Later, Sophie Perkins, McCabe and Hahn swung for another three-straight points that put the Clippers in front 16-12.
The Mustangs fought hard down the stretch, but the game ended 25-19 on a Melia Sathoff match-winning kill.
“We got a big enough lead where we could withstand their run at the end,” Nixon said. “They’re not going to go away easily. We got some crazy points at the end. Everyone is just tired, just sucking wind trying to breath but still be aggressive. There were great plays out there. BLHS played great.”
Hahn also scooped 15 digs, set up one point, reached for one block assist and served four aces. Savannah Meyer hoisted 37 digs, set up three points and dished two ace serves. Melia Sathoff had 10 kills, 20 digs, one set assist and one ace serve. Perkins set up 51 points, elevated 10 digs, stretched for one block assist and dispatched one ace serve. Anika Sathoff had seven kills, nine digs, one block assist and four ace serves. Bartell had six kills, five digs and one assisted ace block. Jocelyn Kortuem had one kill. Taylor McCabe had six kills, one dig, one solo ace block and a pair of assisted ace blocks. Lacey McCabe lifted 17 digs. Blaschko had one dig and two ace serves.
In 2022, the Clippers were close to taking a set from Mayer Lutheran but fell 3-0. This year, the Clippers took on Mayer Lutheran in the regular season, but it was all Crusaders in a 3-0 home triumph.
“It’s not going to get easier,” Nixon said. “But we’re going to take one play at a time and just see what we can do.”
Above: Lacey McCabe bumps the ball to the front of the Clipper court.
