Eight points keep Lynx from taking Metro title
By:
Jill Meier, Journal editor
Lady Lynx senior Felicity Klinkhammer passes the ball to the front row during senior night volleyball action Nov. 2 against Pierre. The Lady Govs won the match in three straight sets. Jill Meier/BV Journal
The Lady Lynx were eight points away from winning the five-team Metro Conference in their Thursday night road match at Lincoln. And that’s a crazy thought, considering Brandon Valley – who will sit out the post-season under the newly-implemented Sweet 16 format – finish with a 2-18 record.
“We had heard that we could be Metro Conference champions with a win, and so the girls played with so much heart and desire to win,” Lynx head coach Dacia Boehrns said.
And they nearly pulled off the feat – and the conference title.
The Lady Lynx took the Patriots to task, after dropping the first set in the extended 27-29 loss, but charged back in the sets two and three behind 25-22 and 25-20 victories.
BV battled the Patriots to a 25-17 loss in the fourth set – those all-important eight points – and followed up with a 15-11 season-ending loss in the fifth.
“We went five sets with them but, in the end, ended up coming up short,” Boehrns said.
Just as she has all season, senior Paige Timmons dominated the net attack, firing 10 kills; Megan Stettnichs delivered five.
Jadah Tschetter and Abby Risty each strong-armed a trio of blocks in the match.
Four Lady Lynx made significant contributions in the back row. Ella Simonson had 14 digs, while Avery Myers added nine to the stats, and Anna Reinschmidt and Macyn Flanigan accounted for six apiece. Flanigan also recorded four ace serves; Myers had two. She also provided 23 set assists.
BV 0, Pierre 3
A victory on BV’s senior night wasn’t in the cards, as the Lady Governors from Pierre dealt the Lynx a 3-0 setback in an early-evening Halloween match. Pierre won with set scores of 25-23, 25-18 and 25-18.
“Although the game went three sets I know the girls played hard and wanted to get a win for the home crowd one last time this season,” Boehrns said.
And they showed that determination Tuesday night. Coming off a 10-day break, the Lady Lynx looked like a well-rehearsed machine, battling the Govs for every point in the nip-and-tuck 25-23 ending.
In the three-set match, Flanigan was a defensive spark for the Lady Lynx, getting a hand on five blocks. Simonson and Felicity Klinkhammer controlled the backrow play, generating 16 and seven digs, respectively.
Risty fired five kills at the Lady Govs, while Myers produced 26 set assists. Flanigan and Simonson both had an ace serve to their credit.
For Pierre, Erika Stout and Cayley Bush had eight and six kills, respectively. Chloe Kaiser led the team with 10 digs, while Emry Heiss had a trio of blocks. Nicole Sarringar offered 11 assists and Halle Gronlund had eight ace serves.
Now at the end of their 2017 season, the Lynx bid farewell to four seniors: Timmons, Tschetter, Klinkhammer and Stettnichs.
“I cannot thank my seniors enough for their leadership both on and off the court this season,” the coach said, “as well as the parents and community of Brandon for their support of the Lynx volleyball team.”
